Distorted Mirror Images
by The Layman
Summary: "Where the heck are all these other Ruby's coming from?" Weiss exclaimed. (AU set after Vol. 3, Ep. 5.) (Main story complete, bonus chapters in progress; "Ruvys's story" upcoming.)
1. Enter: a second Ruby

_I am_ never _touching alcohol again for as long as I live!_ was what went through Weiss's mind as she awoke, coiling back reflexively as she got her first taste of sunlight. _Whoever invented doing shots should be drug out into the streets and be hung for terrorism via chemical warfare!_

She sat up, groaning as a dull ache pounded in the back of her head, a result of the copious drinking she and her team had done the previous night. The reason for that was because Team RWBY had won the Vytal Tournament! More specifically, Yang had managed to beat all the other competitors in the Singles portion that she was paired against. That evening, after the awards ceremonies, Ruby's Uncle Qrow took them all out to what he referred to as "a good dive" to celebrate their victory. After an hour someone suggested they get drunk- Weiss suspected it was Yang, but her memory started getting fuzzy around that point -and the last thing she remembered was barely making it into their room before collapsing on her bunk.

The ache eventually started to subside, and she got to her feet, still slightly woozy from both sleep and the lingering effects of the booze she drank. The morning light was still blinding, and her hand was only doing so much to help. She groped around for a moment before finding and closing the curtains. With that done, she was able to take stock of her teammates.

Yang was draped haphazardly on the side of Blake's lower bunk, most likely because she was too sloshed to make it up to her own bunk. Her vest was hanging off one shoulder, and she was still wearing her boots, though the zippers were undone. Her massive hair was completely disheveled, most of it falling over and hiding her face. However, it did nothing to muffle her chainsaw-like snoring.

Blake, on the other hand, was fully on her bed, curled up in her covers so only her head poked out. Her hair wasn't nearly as messy as her partner's was, despite the fact that she wasn't wearing her ribbon ( _Damn alcohol!_ Weiss thought, cursing the blank spots in her memory.); her Faunus ears were fully on display, and were currently flat against her head. Her face was scrunched up in mild discomfort.

 _I'll just leave them be for now_ , she decided, and began taking stock of herself. Her clothes were fine, though a bit ruffled from having apparently slept in them. She wasn't wearing her boots, but a brief search turned them up at the foot of her bed. Her hair was also out of its usual side tail, but that was because the piece that usually held it in place was resting next to her pillow, probably having fallen out during the night.

She heard a whining noise by her feet, and looked down to find Zwei nuzzling her. He looked up at her expectantly, his tongue hanging from his mouth as he panted; there was a can of dog food and a can opener on the floor next to him.

"Of course I'll feed you," she whispered, gingerly kneeling down and scratching the pooch behind the ear before grabbing the can and tool. Despite both Ruby's and Yang's protestations to the contrary Weiss had a hard time believing the dog could operate tools without opposable thumbs, let alone feed himself from a sealed can, so she often took it upon herself to pamper the little dog. Sometimes Ruby or Yang would feed him if she was preoccupied, but mostly it was her that made sure Zwei was cared for. "Here you go," she said, placing the opened can down so he could get at it, "don't make a mess, OK?"

Zwei just dug into the food with aplomb, the sounds of him eating softly permeated the room.

She stood back up and looked over at Ruby's bunk, dreading what state she'd find the young team leader in. She _hoped_ the fifteen year old wouldn't be wearing fishnet stockings, have tacky mascara on her face, and have a bunch of Lien stuck in her waistband, but the numerous, large gaps in her memory kept telling her she should check anyway just to be sure. Her head still throbbed, but she was able to ignore it well enough to peek over the edge of the suspended bed.

Sure enough, Ruby was still in her normal outfit: no fishnets, no mascara, and as far as she could, Ruby wasn't carrying any more Lien than what she started with. She was just snoozing peacefully, both of them.

 _...wait,_ she realized, something clicking in her still drowsy and hangover brain, _two of them?_

"What the...?" she gasped, doing a double take. She rubbed her eyes, and for good measure she pinched herself on the arm to make sure she wasn't dreaming.

...she needed coffee; it was _waaay_ too early for this kind of weirdness.

By this point Yang was beginning to stir. "Man...," she groaned, flipping onto her back, "what a night! ...wish I could remember any of it." She brushed her hair away from her face, "Oh, Weiss, you're up too. ...something up with Rubes?"

"Stop being so loud...," Blake moaned feebly, tugging her cover further up and turning over so she was facing the wall. "Go somewhere else..."

"Sorry!" Yang whispered. As quietly as she could, Yang walked over to the other bunk bed and climbed up next to Weiss, her head throbbing ("Ow...!") from the quick motion. "So what's up, Weiss?" The heiress's face was white- well, _more_ white -with shock, like she'd seen Professor Port doing sexy poses in a pair of swimming trunks. It would have been funny if Yang's big sister instincts weren't telling her that Weiss got this way after she saw Ruby, so she ignored Weiss for the moment and turned to her sister.

It was immediately clear what Weiss saw.

"Hey...Blake?" the blond brawler called gently, "You wanna come up here for a sec?"

"Go away!" she moaned, louder this time, digging an arm out of the covers to wave her partner away. "You made me do shots; don't talk to me!"

"Uh, I think you might actually want to see this," Yang insisted.

Blake simply flashed Yang a rude gesture and stuck her head under her pillow.

"How...why...what...I don't...!"

Weiss was still having trouble processing the sight before her.

Seeing that her teammates weren't going to be much help, Yang decided to get to the bottom of this by asking the source directly.

"Ruuuuuuby!~" she called, shaking Ruby by her shoulders, "Time to get up, Rubes, up and at 'em!"

"Five more minutes...," she protested, weakly swatting her sisters arm away.

"...they're serving cookies for breakfast," Yang said, trying a differently tactic.

This got the desired result.

"Really!" she squealed, shooting up with sparkles in her eyes.

She grabbed her head in pain a second later when her hangover kicked in.

"Owwwwwowowowowowow!" she moaned, "Ohhhhh...I don't get why people like alcohol... Oh, hey Yang! Um...what wrong with Weiss?"

Yang waved the question off, "Never mind that, think you could try explaining why there's two of you?"

"Two of...wuh?" Ruby rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, trying to figure out what her sister meant by "two of her". Yang helpfully pointed behind her, directing her gaze to were the issue lay.

And apparently the "lay" in this case was literal, since Ruby was now looking at an identical copy of herself sleeping on the other side of her bed, facing the wall. The copy's hood was pulled up so it was impossible to see her face, and she appeared to be hugging a copy of Crescent Rose tightly to her chest; by all outward appearances, she fully appeared to be a second Ruby Rose, similar in every way.

"...Oh, there's another me," she noted, stretching. "...wait a minute!" she realized, finally seeing the weight of the discovery. She grabbed Yang's shoulders, shaking her, "Why is there another me sleeping in my-! Oooowwww, not again...!"

Once again, the hangover reared its ugly head.

"Well, that sucks," Yang sighed as Ruby let her go to deal with the throbbing in her skull, "I was hoping you'd know why you suddenly have you own clone."

"I don't even remember what happened last night!" she exclaimed, "I mean, I remember you winning the tournament, and Uncle Qrow taking us out to celebrate, and then..." She wracked her brain, but was unable to recall any other memories. She looked aghast at Yang, "Is this _always_ what happens when you get drunk?"

Yang shrugged. "Ask Uncle Qrow, I usually stop at two Strawberry Sunrises."

"Why are you guys still here?" Blake asked, finally getting out of bed; she, like the rest, was still in her clothes from the previous day, and was also retying her bow up, "My head is killing me, and you all sound like you're talking through a megaphone; what's so important that you have to yell about-"

"Why are there two Ruby's?!" Weiss shrieked, finally managing to find her words again.

This got Blake's attention (as well as sending pain shooting through her skull). She climbed up to Ruby's bunk, joining Weiss and Yang on the edge.

"...how do we know it's actually a second Ruby?" she asked, spotting Ruby's cloak wrapped around something relatively humanoid shaped. "I'm guessing none of us can remember what happened last night, right?"

"Pretty much," Yang said, while Ruby and Weiss nodded once.

"So how do any of you know that it's an actual person?"

They all thought about that for a second.

"How about we check that before jumping to any more conclusion?" she suggested.

Yang nodded, "Yeah, good idea."

Ruby and Weiss nodded as well.

Then they all stared at Ruby.

"...what?" she wondered hesitantly.

"You're closest," Weiss pointed out curtly, nodding to the figure. "Unless you want one of us to climb up and do it, but I don't think the bed will hold if it gets any heavier."

Blake and Yang nodded in agreement.

Ruby gulped, more because she was suddenly the center of attention than not being wanting or even willing to do it.

"S-sure!" she said, reaching out for the hood. She hesitated for a moment before pinching it and gently drawing it back.

Without warning, the figure bolted upright and jumped off the bed (nearly causing the girls to fall in the process) and headed for the door, trying to yank it open. When that proved unsuccessful, they dashed over to the window and threw it open, pausing on the sill.

"Well, we know she's alive," Yang noted, hopping to the floor. She called out "You might want to get down from there, it's a long drop."

"We're not going to hurt you," Blake added, speaking calmly; she'd seen and heard of similar situations in her younger days, "Let's just talk-"

The figure immediately whirled around and brought their duplicate Crescent Rose to bear in its gun form, pointing it directly at Blake.

"Y-y-you st-stay back!" she stuttered in Ruby's voice, her weapon shaking just as much as her voice was, "I know how t-to use th-this, a-and I'm n-n-not afraid to sh-shoot!" She chambered a round, tightening her grip.

Blake froze, putting her hands in the air. "We don't want to hurt you-"

"Sh-shut up!" the girl demanded shakily, "D-d-don't think you c-can sweet talk me with those p-p-pretty words; th-this is-sn't the first t-time you p-p-people have tried this!"

"Psst, Blake!" Yang whispered, peeking out from under Weiss's covers, "Keep the crazy clone Ruby occupied, I've got a plan!"

"Why are you under here, again?" Weiss asked, peeking out next to Yang.

"Don't judge me," Yang hissed, "Besides, you're under here too!"

"She has a point," added Ruby, poking her head down from the other side of the bunk.

BANG! suddenly sounded through the room, causing all the girls to flinch in surprise; the copy Ruby squeaked and fumbled with her weapon before once again getting a grip on it and training it towards the collective group.

"All of you, sh-shut up!" she shouted. "Th-that was a warning sh-shot," she explained, unconvincingly due to her perpetual stutter, "N-now, y-y-you're gonna answer all my quest-questions, o-or I'll sh-shoot you f-for real!" She aimed copy Crescent Rose at Ruby, "St-starting with th-that c-clone!"

"What!?" she gasped, unable to tear her eyes away from her own weapon being pointed at her.

Yang, however, had a different reaction to someone threatening her sister.

"OK, that tears it!" She leaped out from under the covers, rolled to avoid getting hit by another errant shot, backhanded copy Crescent Rose to the side, grabbed the girl by her throat, and shoved her up against the bookcase, a few books falling out from the impact. "I don't care if you _are_ a clone," she growled, her eyes glowing red, "but nobody, and I mean _nobody_ , threatens _my little sister_ and lives...to..."

The girl's hood fell back during the struggle, finally revealing her face. When Yang saw it, all her rage completely evaporated, her eyes fading back to their natural lilac.

"Oh...!"

"What is it?" Weiss asked, finally crawling out into the open. "Is she taken care of yet?"

"Who is she?" Blake wondered, her curiosity getting the better of her.

"Well...," Yang said slowly, shrugging, "she's...she's Ruby. Sort of...?"

Ruby looked confused. "What do mean she's 'sorta me'?" she asked.

Yang held the girl in front of her, "See for yourselves."

The girl did indeed look uncannily identical to the fifteen year old team leader, right down to the way the corner of her mouth tipped upward, a tic of Ruby's whenever she was startled or nervous. Her outfit was also the same, though more ratty and disheveled, like it hadn't been mended in years. Her eyes darted fearfully from girl to girl, never resting on one for more than a second or two. Her face was grimy and her hair was clearly unkempt, and there were two dog like ears on top of her head.

"Whoa," Ruby marveled, "didn't see that coming..."

 _to be continued..._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _What a tweest!_

 _Hey there, Layman here, and welcome to my newest project! Which makes...*does brief calculations*...yet another story to add to the many I'm juggling already. Eh he he..._

 _Stupid, stupid plot bunnies...!_

 _Anyway, this one came about when I was reading a fic slated to be featured in Weiss Reacts Vol.3- which took an admittedly cool concept and turned it into utter garbage that constantly tries to molest a fifteen year old girl -when I started thinking about Crimson Thorne, my AU Ruby OC. This in turn got me thinking about_ other _AU Ruby concepts, which got turned into this story._

 _And this is only the beginning; I've still got more AU Ruby's I want to play with, which I plan on slowly revealing in the upcoming chapters. This was the first of those Ocs, who I affectionately refer to as "Faunus Ruby". (For obvious reasons.) I'll delve into her back story a little in the next chapter._

 _Oh, before you ask: no shipping, because that's not the intention of this fic, and I've already got enough AU Ruby OCs, as I only planned to use a finite number of them for this project from the get go._

 _Let me repeat that, **THERE WON'T BE ANY SHIPPING IN THE ENTIRETY OF THIS FIC**. If you want two characters in a romantic relationship or acting completely out of character (the two things are mutually exclusive concepts), go read some other fic; I actually bother to give my stories a narrative._

 _And with that, I bid you all adue until next time, where Faunus Ruby has some slpainin' to do!_


	2. Getting to know you

_And here we are, Chapter 2! Let's see what Faunus Ruby's story is, shall we?"_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"W-whatever you p-plan on doing with me, j-j-just g-get it over with," the Faunus Ruby pleaded as Yang set her on the floor, "d-don't m-make me s-s-suffer..."

Team RWBY balked at this.

"Why would you think we'd want to make you suffer?" Blake asked, kneeling down next to the girl, who scooted back into the bookcase, wrapping herself in her cloak.

 _She's so scared...,_ Blake thought, _like I was..._ This girl's behavior was reminding her of her life before she joined up with the White Fang: lonely, frightened, and scared of humans so much that she would rather starve than go to them for food. It was...disconcerting and heartbreaking that this girl had to live through whatever caused her to be like this for so long...

"Look...," Weiss said gently, inching closer to the girl, "we know you're scared, but we're really not going to hurt you."

"W-w-why should I b-believe you?" the girl asked, glancing up at the heiress, "All you d-d-dirty humans d-do is lie t-to us and k-kill Faunus, even when th-they s-say they're s-sorry!" She hugged her knees to her chest, "I m-mean, i-it wasn't _her_ f-f-fault that she was t-tired from working in th-th-the mines all d-day, a-a-and that apple was on the ground a-anyways, and she s-said that she'd give it b-back...b-b-but they j-just kept hitting her, a-and hitting her, and hitting her, and hitting her, and hitting her!..." Finally, she burst into tears, burying her face in her knees. "And then Yang- *sniff!* ...Yang tried to get them to st-stop, *hic!*, and sh-she punched them, and th-then one of them hit her, a-and then he pulled out a gun, and he...he...!" Her words became unintelligible as she devolved into wretched sobs.

None of the girls knew what to say.

Eventually, Blake reached up and undid her bow, exposing her Faunus ears. "Hey," she said, "I know what it's like."

"N-no you d-don't!" she spat, not looking up, "Y-you're the w-worst one *hic!* of them all!"

Blake continued, "I'm a Faunus, just like you."

The girl obviously didn't believe her, because she lunged for her weapon, screaming wordlessly. Yang was having none of this and tackled the Faunus version of her sister before she could reach it, struggling to keep her held in check with how much and how furiously she fought back.

"Calm _down_ already, will ya?" the blond strained, the Faunus Ruby wriggling violently, "Geez, you're worse than Ruby when we try to get her to eat vegetables!"

"Not my fault they're so gross-" she tried to protest as Weiss laid a hand on her shoulder, slowly shaking her head.

"Not the time," she said.

Ruby nodded, the message clear, and turned her attention back to the struggle.

"Yang," Blake said, "can you hold on to her for a minute?"

"Yeah! ...Why?"

"Good. Let one of her arms go."

Yang raised an eyebrow but complied with the odd sounding request, trusting her partner. As soon as the Faunus Ruby had an arm free she lashed out at her captor.

"Whatever you have planned, make it quick!" She grunted as the Faunus got in a lucky shot on her face, "This isn't as fun as it looks!"

Blake nodded and tried to grab hold of the girl's arm, succeeding after a couple failed attempts. Once the arm was in her grasp, she quickly positioned the girl's hand over her cat ears.

The reaction was immediate; the instant her hand touched, the Faunus Ruby stopped thrashing and stared at Blake, rubbing her ears experimentally. Then she tugged on them, causing Blake to wince briefly.

"See? It's just like I said; I'm a Faunus." She nodded to Yang, who let the girl go. "No one's going to hurt you."

"You- ...you're r-really a Faunus?" the girl asked, astonished.

"Yes, I am." Blake drew the girl into a hug, petting her on the head.

The effect of this was that the girl finally breaking down and collapsed into Blake, embracing her in a tight hug.

"That was...impressive," Weiss said, a touch of admiration in her voice. "What was that thing you did?"

"She was panicking, so I showed her something that was impossible to disprove," Blake explained, "It's something Faunus can do for other Fauus to help them calm down if they're distraught or upset."

"How'd you know that would work?" Yang asked, to which Blake shrugged.

"I had a hunch because of what she said before about humans. Besides, I've seen it work before, when I was younger."

Ruby, who'd been mostly silent for the past couple minutes, tried to shake hands with the identical girl now that she'd calmed down, but the Faunus Ruby merely shrank behind Blake, staring at Ruby with wary and untrusting eyes. "I'm not going to hurt you," she said, still holding out her hand, "honest!" No change. "...I'll share my cookies with you?" the crimsonette attempted, much to the same result.

"I don't think she trusts the rest of us yet," Weiss said, "Maybe we should let Blake handle this, seeing as the girl only seems comfortable around her."

Ruby drooped. "Aw, but I wanted to talk with myself!..."

"She's not actually- ...never mind, it's too complicated."

"You mean multiverse theory?" Ruby asked, much to the surprise of Weiss's raised eyebrows. Sensing the rest of her team's confusion, she explained, "Back on Patch, when I got bored, sometimes I would pretend to build a machine that could travel to different worlds." She bopped her pointer fingers together sheepishly, "I... _may_ have gone a little overboard on the research..."

"Well, that explains why you always brought home text books from the library," Yang realized.

"You- ...y-you have l-lib-b-braries here?" the girl asked eagerly, peeking over Blake's shoulder, "And you g-get to use th-them?"

"Well, yeah!" Ruby said, cocking her head to the side, "Why, do you not have them where you're from?"

"N-no...I mean, th-there are, but F-f-faunus aren't allowed i-in them..."

"...are you serious?" Weiss asked, not quite able to comprehend what she was hearing. She wasn't blind to the bigotry and discrimination against the Faunus, she'd even been part of it until recently, but even her own father, infamous for his abuse of the Faunus as a workforce, wouldn't suggest something so utterly abhorrent as to keep an entire people group from having access to literature.

She must have come of more harsh than she intended, because the Faunus Ruby cowered further behind her makeshift shield, whimpering.

"Weiss...!" Blake glared.

"Sorry!" she quickly apologized, "I was just asking!"

"Well, ask nicer." She turned back to the scared Faunus, "Ignore Weiss, she's insensitive."

"Hey!"

"Anyway, things aren't like that here-"

Suddenly there was a loud knock on the girls' door. The Faunus Ruby squeaked and dove under Blake bed, briefly popping back out to grab her Crescent Rose.

" _Girls,"_ said Glynda Goodwitch's voice from the other side, _"is everything all right in there?"_

"Uh, y-yeah! Everything's fine!" Ruby called back instinctively, "We're all fine, here...thank you! ...how are you?"

Weiss, Blake and Yang all sweatdropped.

"You dunce...," Weiss sighed, shaking her head.

" _I'm doing fine, Miss Rose,"_ Glynda said, _"Could you please open the door?"_

"Uh...sure! Give me a minute!" she replied, despite the numerous and explicit signals her team was giving to the contrary. "Is something wrong?" she asked as she opened the door.

"I've just received reports of someone's weapon discharging in this part of the building," the teacher explained, forgoing pleasantries in lieu of business, "I've already visited Team JNPR's room, Miss Valkyrie being the most likely culprit for something like this...but she wasn't responsible, so I have to ask if any of you girls know anything."

"Um, well..." Ruby sheepishly rubbed the back of her head, unsure how to answer giving what had just transpired. Plus, Glynda's impassive, penetrating stare wasn't really helping matters.

Fortunately Blake came to her rescue, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Yang and Ruby were roughhousing earlier," she explained, "things nearly got out of hand, and Ruby accidentally dropped Crescent Rose." She gently nudged Ruby, "You're usually really about weapon maintenance."

"Uh...yeah," Ruby nodded, "I guess...I didn't have any time after the Tournament." This was technically true, since they pretty much gone straight from the stadium to the bar with Qrow. She wasn't quite sure why Blake was keeping the Faunus version of her a secret, but in for a Lien and all that... "Sorry about that," she said to Glynda, "I'll be more careful in the future!"

"...very well, then," Glynda said, making a note on her Scroll, "given that is was an accident I won't formally reprimand you. However, I will expect your four to repair the hole your shot made on your own."

Ruby silver eyes drifted to the wall next to the door, where a newly made hole now resided.

"I'll have the custodians bring the necessary supplies here later," she said, turning to leave, "Have a pleasant afternoon, girls."

"You too!" Ruby called down the hall as Glynda disappeared around a corner.

"Holt crap, it's _afternoon_?!" Yang exclaimed, "I thought it was morning; when did it get so late?"

"What was all that?" Weiss demanded, walking up to Blake, "Why didn't you tell her about the Faunus girl hiding under your bed?"

"Have you seen her?" Blake pointed to her bed. "She's a nervous wreck! Besides, in her world, Ms. Goodwitch could have been head of the Secret Police or something like that!"

"But you don't know that for sure, do you?"

"I know that she doesn't trust humans, and that she probably only trusts us as much as she does because of me, and even then only barely!"

" _Sh-sh-she has a n-name, y-you know_?"

Team RWBY all turned towards Blake's bunk, where the Faunus girl's head poked out from underneath.

"I have a n-name," she repeated, crawling out in the open. "I-i-it's Ruby..."

"That figures," Yang drawled.

"So Ruby," Ruby said, extending her hand once again, "I'm Ruby too! As in, 'also'! Pleasure to meet you!"

The Faunus girl regarded the proffered hand cautiously before reaching out with her own, gingerly taking Ruby's.

"P-pleasure t-to meet you...," she said.

"So, I hate to interrupt the beginning of this beautiful friendship," Yang interrupted, "but I'm just gonna nip this in the bud and say that we need a something else Little Miss Faunus here, or else this is gonna get confusing."

"We can worry about that later," Weiss said. She'd since picked up Zwei and was scratching behind his ears, "Right now, I think our biggest problem is figuring out what to with Ruby now that she's here."

"Huh?" both Ruby's said in unison.

"...OK, I see your point," Weiss admitted, "we can toss out whatever we can think of. Still, is it really feasible for her to stay here, or would she be better off living somewhere else?"

"So you're saying we should kick her out?" Blake asked, causing the Faunus Ruby to squeak in fright.

"No, I'm not saying that! She can stay here until something better comes along; I'm just thinking long term."

"You know," Ruby suggested, "if you want, I don't think our dad would mind if you wanted to stay with him on Patch; it's a little out of the way, but there's still stuff to do."

The Faunus girl regarded Ruby warily.

"Y-y-you don't have to make a decision right now!" she backpedaled, "Like Weiss said, you can stay here for a while, so take some time and think about it!"

"O-OK," she said, giving a small nod, "th-thanks..."

"...Well, 'Ruby 2' doesn't really have a ring to it," Yang mused, sitting down on Weiss's bunk, "How about...'Rose'?"

Weiss shook her head, "No, that doesn't feel right... Maybe something like 'Byzantium' or 'Robin' or something like that."

"What about 'Garnet'?" suggested Ruby, "That's sorta like Ruby, right?"

"Here's an idea," Blake interjected, "why don't we let _her_ choose her own name?"

Ruby, Yang, and Weiss all looked at their feet, embarrassed.

"I guess that works too..." Ruby pouted, twiddling her fingers.

Blake turned to the Faunus girl. "Is there anything you wouldn't mind being called?" she asked.

"U-um...?" She thought for a moment. "Well...my m-m-mom used t-to call me Roseb-b-bud-" Then she shook her head violently, steeling her face. "C-call me Rosey." She nodded, looking pleased with her choice. "Y-yeah, 'Rosey'..."

" _Rrrrrosey..._ ," Ruby said, trying the name out. "Yeah, that's good!"

"That sounds a lot like _my_ suggestion-" Yang humphed, to which Blake punched her arm. "Hey!"

As the girls all expressed their affirmation at Rosey's choice the door to the room's tiny bathroom swung open, a towel clad girl (who also bore more than a passing resemblance to Ruby) walking out while drying her hair off.

"Hey, Barb, have you seen my clothes?" the new girl asked, "I know I put them next to the tub! I swear, if Samantha hid them on me again, I'm gonna-"

As she wrapped the second towel around her head, she suddenly noticed that she wasn't alone in the room.

"...," she said, frozen in place.

"...," the other girls said, surprised that another Ruby had appeared.

"...EEEEEEEEEEKKKK!" the new girl screamed, leaping back into the bathroom and slamming the door behind her.

Weiss just let her head fall into her palm, shaking it sadly.

 _to be continued..._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _So, y'all see that letter at the top of the page, just under the author pseudonym? Yeah, that's the Rating, and it's staying right the [censor] where it is, and it's not changing for nothing!_

 _Now that we got_ that _out of the way, we can add another tick to the Ruby Tally! (Yes, that's a thing I'm doing. Deal with it.) So far, we're at 3/8 Ruby's, and there's still more to come!_

 _Also, I thought about leaving the naming of Faunus Ruby up to the readers, but eventually I decided that I just wanted it over and done with so I could concentrate on actually working on the story. No offense to you guys reading this, I'm just impatient. Regardless, 'Rosey' just sounds like the name of a Ruby-like, canine Faunus hailing from a world where humans impose a totalitarian rule over the Faunus, effectives turning them into Third Class citizens, right?_

 _And yes, cliffhangers at the end of a chapter are going to be the norm, thanks for asking._

 _Next time, we deal with the Goliath in the room. (Which is_ obviously _why Zwei doesn't have a larger presence here.)_


	3. Let's go shopping!

_Hey people, Chapter 3 is up and ready! And, in the words of the navigator of the greatest starship ever...Oh_ MY!

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"Hey, new girl," Ruby asked through the bathroom door, "you OK in there?"

" _I...guess so,_ " the girl said, " _I mean, my hip feels a little sore from when I dove in here, but I think my dignity's still intact._ "

"How'd you get in our bathroom?" Yang called from over by the dresser, digging through her clothes. "Last I checked, there was only one door into there."

" _You're guess is as good as mine,_ " she answered, " _One minute I'm enjoying a nice, long shower, the next I can't find my clothes and I walk into a room I've never seen before with a bunch of people who look like my friends in cosplay._ " She paused for a moment, " _...did...Am I going crazy, or did two of you have cat ears?_ "

"We're Faunus," Blake explained, "I'm a cat Faunus, and Rosey here is a dog Faunus."

" _...is that another term for 'Furry' that I just don't know?_ "

Blake's fist clenched and unclenched at the word, Rosey's ears drooping as well.

"It's not politically correct to say that anymore," Weiss said, "Trust me, I learn that out the hard way."

" _...OK then; ix-nay on the Urry-fay. Got it._ "

"Aha!" exclaimed Yang, holding up her spoils, "Perfect!" She walked back over and opened the door a crack, passing the garments through. "This is the biggest shirt I have," she explained, "Unfortunately, I don't think any of my pants will fit you, so you'll have to talk to Ruby about that."

" _Well, it's better than nothing._ " After a minute the door opened, revealing the new girl; instead of a towel, she now wore a t-shirt quite a few sizes too big, with the six faces of the Achieve Men on it. Her hair, now that it wasn't wrapped up, was dark brown with natural red highlights, and fell down to about her shoulders. "It's not see through," she asked, "is it?"

Ruby shook her head. "Nope! Looks good to me!" She and Yang both gave a Thumbs Up.

"So _obviously_ the first thing to do is to get you some proper clothes," Weiss noted, before turning to look at Rosey. "For the both of you."

"N-n-no!" Rosey protested, "Y-you don't have to b-b-other with m-me; m-my clothes are f-fine, honest!"

"Don't be such a dunce, it's _obvious_ you've been wearing the same thing for way longer than you should; you're getting new clothes, and that's final!"

"Eep!" Rosey squeaked, shrinking behind Blake (who was redoing her bow), "Y-y-yes ma'am!"

"Stop scaring her!" Blake chastised, glaring at the heiress.

"I'm not trying to!" she protested.

"That fact that she's still cowering behind me begs to differ!"

Zwei looked between the two girls as they traded blows, wondering why Weiss wasn't petting him anymore.

"Hey!" the new girl yelled, getting the girls' attention. "Is any of this-" she gestured to Blake and Weiss "- _really_ helping?"

"No...," Weiss grudgingly admitted.

Blake said nothing, but her bow drooping slightly spoke more than words would have.

"I may not fully get what's going on here," she continued, "but I can tell when two friends argue over nothing. So shake hands and make up already!"

The two girls looked at the new girl, then at each other.

"I'll...try to less intimidating," Weiss consented.

Blake nodded. "Thanks. Sorry for being so...you know..."

"Self righteous?" Weiss guessed.

"Shouldn't that be you're line?" Blake wondered.

The new girl flicked each of them on the side of their heads. "Now shake hands," she demanded, her tone leaving no room for argument.

Blake and Weiss each shook the other's hand, nearly withering under the girl's oddly oppressive gaze.

"...How about we split up?" Ruby suggested in an attempt to break the awkward silence, "Blake and I could go with Rosey, and the new girl could go with Weiss and Yang, that way we can cover more ground!"

Weiss raised an eyebrow, "Why would we need to cover more ground if we're just buying clothes?"

"Because, _Weiss_ ," Yang told her like she was explaining it to a toddler, slinging an arm over the heiress's shoulder, "we're girls, and when girls go clothes shopping, they need to go to as many stores as possible to try on all of the clothes they can before go back to the first store and buying something there!"

Weiss stared at Yang with an unreadable expression on her face. "...I can't tell if you're serious or not."

"She is," Ruby confirmed, "it's what Mom always did whenever Yang and I needed new clothes."

"Yeah, sounds about right to me, too," the new girl nodded sagely.

"By the way," Yang said, turning to the new girl, "I don't think we ever caught your name?"

"That's because I didn't throw it!" she said, cracking up. After a few seconds of cackling, she noticed that she was the only one laughing, and stared at the floor in shame. "It's...Ruby Jones, RJ for short...," she said.

"No," Yang deadpanned, "Just...no."

"Yang doesn't like it when other people make bad puns," Ruby explained, patting Ruby Jones comfortingly on the shoulder. Come on, I'll find you some pants and we can head into Vale."

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

The city was _very_ different from the one she grew up in, with all its tall, shiny buildings and bright colors; not at all like the dark and cramped towns she was used to. It wasn't just the buildings that were colorful, the people were too, and there were more populating the streets than she ever remembered seeing in her home town outside of an angry mob!

Needless to say, she was completely enraptured by everything.

She walked down the thoroughfare, marveling at the variety on display: storefronts, kiosks, booths, carts with wheels on them, she couldn't drink it all in fast enough.

 _This is amazing!_ she thought, looking into a store that had a bunch of puppies in the window. _They_ actually _have stores that sell puppies! I sooooo want to live here!_ One of the puppies pawed at the glass where her face was, yipping joyously.

She squeed.

"Hey, Miss?" someone called ripping her attention away from the adorableness in front of her.

"Huh?" she said, turning to the stranger; he must have been a clerk for the puppy story, because he was wearing an apron with a cartoon dog and cat on it.

"If you want to come in and play with the animals a bit, you can," he said, gesturing to the front door.

The girl's eyes lit up. "No way...!" she gasped her eyes sparkling, "I can do that?"

"Well...yeah. Come on in."

"EEEEEEEEE!" she squealed, barely able to contain herself as she followed him inside the store.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Ruby Jones and Rosey the Faunus stared in awe at the enormity of the shopping complex laid out before them, their mouths hanging down by their feet.

"Wow," RJ said, "this is _so_ much bigger than the strip mall I usually go to...!"

"I-it's like...s-someone put a roof over a m-m-marketplace...!" Rosey gasped, from behind Blake. "I n-never thought I'd ever g-get to see it...!"

Team RWBY stood behind them, letting the two alternate Ruby's marvel. It was interesting to watch, since all the girls had grown up with places like this, and was somewhat refreshing to see people discovering it with fresh eyes.

"Pretty neat, huh?" Yang said. "You can find almost anything you can think of here: clothes, food, weapons, Dust, whatever!"

"You sound like a salesman," Weiss noted, pushing past the blond. She reached into a hidden pocket of her bolero jacket and took some Lien cards, handing them to Blake. "Here, that should be more than enough to get her a decent outfit."

"Wait...I thought you said you got cut off," Ruby pointed out.

Weiss bristled slightly at being reminded of that. "That may be the case," she said, her voice calm and measured, "but that doesn't mean I'd leave myself without something for emergencies."

"How about we all meet up at the food court when we're done?" Blake suggested.

"Ooh, good idea!" Ruby bounced on the balls of her feet, "We could go to Duncan's Bakery, they make the _best_ cookies there!"

"Is that anything like 'Dunkin' Donuts'?" RJ wondered.

"Well, they sell donuts there, if that's what you mean," Yang shrugged, not really getting what RJ was asking. (Under her breath she hissed _"Dang it, I shoulda thought of that!"_ )

"Fresh cookies!..." Ruby hummed, her eyes turning into chocolate chip cookies as she thought about it.

"You're drooling," Weiss noted, snapping Ruby out of her daydream.

"Welp, you guys have fun!" Yang called, leading RJ off into the mall. She waved with her Scroll, "Give us a call if something comes up!"

" _Oh my god, that's the coolest phone I've ever seen!"_ could be heard as Weiss hurried after them. _"And it turns into a tablet too? Awesome!"_

"OK then, let's get going!" Ruby announced, grabbing hold of Rosey's hand and dragging her along, "I know the _perfect_ store we can go to!"

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"Oh you are just the cutest little thing _ever_!" the girl cooed as she held a Labrador puppy in her arms a like a baby, scratching its chin, "Yes you are, yes you are!~" The puppy yipped happily, playfully nipping at the girl's fingers.

She set the puppy back down in its pen and picked up another one, a furry little terrier, giggling as it licked her nose.

"...I'm gonna call you Pongo!" she decided, holding the newly christened "Pongo" over her head, the pup panting dumbly but happily. It yipped, which she took to mean he liked the name, smiling and nuzzling its nose. "Who's a good Pongo?" she cajoled, "Who's a good Pongo?"

"Uh...Miss?" the clerk said, "I know the puppies are cute and everything...but I don't think you're allowed to sit in the pen with them."

"Hmm?" She looked up at the clerk, her eyes still sparkling from the cuteness of the tiny animals.

They were super effective.

"...be careful climbing over the fence," he said, struggling to resist against the girl's eyes. He then headed back over to the register, where what appeared to be a young boy and his parents were waiting.

Shrugging, she went back to playing with the dogs, scratching a beagle puppy on the back of its neck.

Some time later she looked out the storefront window, watching the people going to and fro, to wherever it was they were heading. A pang loneliness went through her heart as the culture shock wore off and she remembered all of her friends and family back home: Ember, Shroud, Myrty, her own Doggy, she missed them all. And as cool and amazing as this city and its puppy dog stores were, she wished she was back in the familiar dark, lamp lit streets of The Vale tracking down the Creatures of Grimm with her friends and collecting their Souls.

She sighed, looking down at the young Husky she was petting, "I bet you don't miss your family, do you, boy?"

The puppy yawned and rolled over so she could pet its belly.

"Yeah...that's what I thought..." She stood up and carefully climbed over the short fence, shuffling towards the door.

"Come again!" the clerk waved to her as she left the store, picking a random direction and walking that way; she didn't really have a destination in mind since she didn't know what this new world was like, but at the same time she didn't care, she just wanted to go somewhere.

"I wonder if there's even a way for me to get back...?" she wondered, kicking a pebble down the street.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

" _A-are you s-sure this is OK?_ " Rosey asked from inside the changing room, " _Th-th-these seem t-too nice..._ "

"Really?" Ruby wondered, holding a couple outfits that Rosey already tried on and rejected, including one that looked identical to her own, "Ya think? Cause this isn't really a very high end store."

" _N-not for me; n-normally us Faunus m-make our own clothes, o-or we tried to selvage them for the g-garbage,_ " the young Faunus explained, draping her tattered cloak over the changing room door, " _S-s-sometimes, the b-bolder of us will try and steal f-from the human cities, but..._ " She trailed off, suddenly getting quiet. " _...m-my friend was always s-saying how she w-w-wanted this one j-jacket that she always s-saw the humans wearing, but nob-b-body would ever th-throw one out. So, o-one night, w-we snuck into V-V-Vale City, but she got c-caught._ " Another pause. " _That was the l-last t-time I saw her..._ "

"...Sorry about that," Ruby said hesitantly, somewhat taken by her Faunus counterpart's sudden revelation, "You must have had a pretty rough life, huh?"

" _Y-yeah...b-but it's not bad!_ " she amended, " _I live with my uncle i-in this house we built t-together, a-and he even helped me m-make my scythe!_ " She took her cloak off the door and stepped out of the room a moment later, wearing the newest outfit. "H-how about this one?"

Her new outfit was quite similar to her old one, albeit in obviously better condition; aside from that, her newest outfit was sleeveless, and she'd traded Ruby's combat skirt for a pair of cargo pants.

Ruby gave a strong Thumbs Up, "I think we we have a winner!"

"It's a good look for you," Blake said, walking up to the two Ruby's.

"Where'd you go?" Ruby asked. "You were just gone all of a sudden!"

Blake shrugged. "I went to pick up some supplies," she said, holding up a small shopping bag filled with groceries, "We'll need more than just clothes if Rosey and RJ are going to be staying with us."

"Oh, I guess that makes sense." She turned back to Rosey, "Is that the one you're going with?"

"Mmhmm," she nodded, pinning her cloak back up, "th-this one feels right."

"You going to keep that?" Blake asked, gesturing to the cloak.

Rosey nodded again, "I-I-It was my m-mother's. A-after she- It...helps me r-rem-member her..."

Blake sighed, understanding exactly what the young Faunus meant; Ruby gave a similar reason when asked about her own cloak.

"Well, let's pay and meet back up with the others-" she said, before another door opening caught her attention.

This on its own wasn't too out of the ordinary, but the person who stepped through it was; she was about as tall as Blake, maybe a little taller. Her voluminous, dark auburn hair cascaded down her back, just below her waist, and was colored red at the tips. She wore a snow white hooded cloak over a black blouse, cincher, and skirt, and knee high leather boots completed the ensemble.

"Oookay," she said in a voice an octave or two lower than Ruby's, "wasn't expecting _this_..."

 _to be continued..._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _To address the obvious question I'm sure you all have, yes, those bits in the middle are for another of the Ruby OCs, which only you'll just have to keep reading. (I'm not including her in the Ruby Tally because she hasn't actually met the girls yet.)_

 _However, the new player at the end of the chapter (Ruby Tally: 4/8) I can tell you is clearly an older version of Ruby, in case you haven't picked up on it. Beyond that, you'll have to read the next chapter to learn more about her; need to have_ some _draw for people to keep coming back, right?_

 _Also, although some might argue semantics on this, I've changed all instances of "cape" to "cloak"in the previous chapters. (The RWBY Wiki says Ruby wears a cloak, so that's what I'm going with here.)_

 _Not really a lot to say this time, so I'll see y'all in the next chapter, where we check in on the other group..._


	4. Two for one

_And welcome back, party people! We saw what Ruby, Blake and Rosey were up to last time, now let's check on Weiss, Yang and RJ..._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"No, it's black and blue!" Yang insisted, holding up the offending dress she'd picked for RJ to try on.

"You must be colorblind," Weiss shot back, "because it's _clearly_ white and gold!"

RJ was awkwardly holding a bunch of dresses in her arms, her head whipping between the two girls as they traded barbs with each other over what color the dress was. This had been going on for the last ten minutes, and now she was starting to feel kind of dizzy.

"Uh, guys-" she tried to interject, the actual white and gold pair turning to glare at her.

" _What?!"_ they yelled in unison.

"Um...it doesn't really matter what color the dress is, because I don't even wear dresses anyway; I'm actually more of a tomboy."

Yang and Weiss both fell over sideways.

"Well, that's twenty minutes wasted," Weiss grumbled, picking herself up. "Remind me, why did we come over here again?"

"Because I made a comment about one of the dresses and then Yang dragged me over here and started pulling stuff off the racks," RJ supplied. She adjusted the dresses so she had a better hold on them.

"You said it looked cool!" Yang protested. "How was I supposed to know you didn't like to wear this kind of stuff?"

RJ shrugged, "You could have asked."

Weiss sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose as she felt another headache coming on. "This is why you almost lost in the semifinals, you just rushed in without thinking." She took RJ's hand and lead her away from the dresses, "Come on, let's try is again."

"But what about…?" she asked, struggling to hold onto the bundle of clothes with only one arm.

"Just toss them someplace," Weiss said, "the staff will take care of them."

As RJ set the clothes on a nearby rack, Yang followed after them, her arms huffily folded over her chest.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Ruby, Blake and Rosey all stared at the newest "copy", and she stared at them, neither party quite sure what to say next.

Eventually Ruby broke the awkward silence. "I'm...hi?" she ventured, waving uncertainly at the older version of herself.

"Hello," the young woman said, returning the wave with a nod. "...You aren't me from the past, are you?" she asked.

Ruby shook her head. "Nope; parallel world." She jerked her thumb at Rosey, "She's me as a Faunus."

"Ah," the older Ruby nodded in comprehension, "that makes a lot more sense." She looked over at Rosey, who was trying to shrink behind Blake. "She's rather shy, isn't she?"

"She had a hard life where she came from," Blake said, reaching back to pat Rosey on the shoulder.

"Oh…. OK then, say no more. By the way," she said, addressing group and doing a small curtsy, "my name is Ruby Rose." She looked between Ruby and Rosey, "I'm guessing both of you are also Ruby?"

"Uh huh," affirmed Ruby, "though we call her Rosey so we can tell each other apart." She snapped her fingers, "Oh, and there's RJ, but she's somewhere else with Yang and Weiss right now."

The older Ruby looked shocked at this. "You mean she went with Weiss _voluntarily?"_ she wondered.

"Uh...yeah?" Ruby had her eyebrow raised, not really understanding Older Her's question. "Why wouldn't she?"

"Because she's normally really shy, like our Faunus counterpart here," she explained, gesturing to Rosey. "She always makes a fuss whenever 'Big Sis', me, tries has to leave her alone for any length of time; she's gotten a little better about it since she got accepted early to Beacon, but it's still a problem when she's in a crowd of strangers."

"Hang on," interrupted Blake, something the young woman said gnawing at her, "you said you're the big sister, so does that mean your Yang is younger than you?"

"Of course," she said matter of factly, "Is yours not?"

Ruby shook her head. "Nope, I'm the younger sister; she's two years older than me."

"M-m-me t-to," Rosey stuttered.

"My, I _really_ wasn't expecting that…," the older girl breathed, sitting down gracefully on the floor, "I just assumed…."

Just then Ruby's Scroll beeped.

"Oh, it's Yang," she said as she saw the caller ID. She looked sheepishly at the others, "Uh, just a sec!" She pressed the answer button. "...Yang?"

" _Hey Sis!_ " Yang said on the other end of the line, " _RJ found something she likes, so we're gonna pay and head over to Duncan's. How're you guys doing?_ "

"Rosey found something too. And, um…." She hesitated, rubbing the back of her head, "Well...we found another me."

" _Really? What's she like?_ " Yang cut her off before she could answer the question, " _Hang on, Weiss wants to talk- I'm telling her, hold your- here._ "

A moment later Weiss spoke, " _Did you really find another version of you?_ "

"Yes…? She's kinda like an older version of me."

" _...does she need a new outfit too?_ "

"I don't think so, let me ask." She muted the call, "Hey, older me, do you need new clothes too?"

She shook her head. "I believe I'll suffice with what I have now," she said. "And call me 'Sister'; I feel that will be easier since there are four of us here."

"'Kay!" she unmuted the call, "She says she's fine, and that we should call her Sister."

"... _All right then, we'll meet up in the food court after you pay for the clothes._ " Then she added " _And don't spend the change!_ " and hung up.

"So!" Ruby said, turning back to the group (now plus 1), "Who's hungry?"

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

The girl didn't know how long she'd been kicking the pebble down the street, and she didn't really care; she was lonely, and she wished her friends were here with her.

"This place is stupid," she grumbled to herself, giving the pebble another halfhearted kick.

She looked up at the colorful buildings again, though this time they'd lost their novelty and now looked obnoxious. She looked around for someplace dark she could mope for a while, finding an alleyway just ahead, trudging over and plopping down in the shadows.

Her thoughts once again turned towards her friends and how much fun they were having before the vortex; they'd just defeated a massive Arachnae Grimm, and Ember accidentally fired a shot off at Myrty because she got too excited and made some awful pun about spiders. Myrty and Ember started yelling at each other, and Shroud had to step between them to get them to stop. Doggy bounced up and down as he barked, his food bowl on the ground in front of him, the girls breaking down laughing. And she laughed too, glad that she had such awesome friends (and an awesome dog).

And now she was Oum knows where, all alone with no one to help her or even just to explain what happened.

"I wanna go back to The Vale…," she moaned, letting her head fall back against a dumpster. Little tears began to well up in the corners of her eyes.

Then someone called out "Thief!" from down the street, and a moment later some guy in grungy clothes (he also had round, furry ears in his head for some reason) ran past, holding some kind of handbag.

At that moment her instincts kicked in and rushed agree the thief. She may have been depressed, but she was still a Grimm Huntress, and part of her duty as one was to protect those who couldn't protect themselves; this guy may not have been a Creature of Grimm, but he was clearly a bad guy, and as such needed to be stopped before another helpless handbag fell prey to his evil, handbag stealing ways!

"Stop in the name of the law!" she shouted, hot on the thief's tail. He briefly looked back and saw some girl in a red hood chasing him, and he quickly ducked into a parking lot. The girl wasn't phased in the slightest, following eight after him; she'd fought Creatures of Grimm in the depths of the Ebony Woods, one of the densest forests in all of The Remnant, so warning in and out of the strange looking vehicles after the Thief was child's play for her.

"Drop the bag and nobody gets hurt!" she yelled just before the Thief made it to doors of a large building, roughly pushing his way past a couple who were just coming out of it.

He disappeared as the doors started to slide closed after him.

"Shoot!" she cursed. Almost without thinking, she dove over a vehicle that was in her way, quickly turning her bottom half into the barrel of a sniper rifle and firing off a round, propelling herself forward so she reached the door before it fully closed, quickly changing back as she landed. With a final burst of speed and a quick "'Scuse me!" to the couple she jumped through the door, a seal of some kind hissing as the doors shut behind her.

Her eyes almost fell out of her skull when she saw the sheer volume of people inside the building.

"This _might_ take a while," she signed, heading into the throng of people to find the Thief.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

RJ dug into her giant chocolate chip cookie with aplomb, savoring the way the rich, gooey chocolate mixed with the soft, crumbly dough. She's traded in the oversized tee and pj bottoms (leant to her by Ruby) for a pair of black skinny jeans and a red tank top that fit her better than the Achieve Men shirt had.

" _Oh muh guhg,_ " she said through a mouthful of cookie, " _dif if duh beft cookie evur!_ "

"Yep," Yang said, "you're _definitely_ Ruby." She took a swig from a can of People Like Grapes soda. "So what do you do for fun?" she asked.

RJ shrugged and swallowed her bite of cookie. "A little of everything, I guess," she said, "it depends on what I'm in the mood for." She lost things off on her fingers, "running, soccer, shooting hoops, board games, video games, I'm really pretty easy like that."

"What's 'shooting hoops'?" Weiss asked.

"You know, like Basketball?" RJ mimed shooting a basket.

Yang and Weiss just stared at her quizzically.

"Seriously, you guys don't have basketball here?" the teen marveled. "What about soccer?"

They shook their heads.

"Baseball?"

The same.

"Football?"

The same.

"...Lacrosse?"

The same.

"Do you have _any_ sports here?"

They both thought for a moment.

"Well, we have the tournament scene," Yang said eventually, "but other than that, not really."

"I know Mistral has some competitive leagues," Weiss said, "and Atlas sometimes holds its own tournaments to keep the students sharp, but between training and working and fighting the Grimm, there's isn't really any time or purpose for sports."

"Except for the Vytal Festival tournament," Yang added, jerking her thumbs towards herself, "which yours truly _won_ ; strongest Huntress in all of Remnant, right here!"

"And _ever_ so humble!" Weiss drawled sarcastically. She turned back to RJ, ignoring Yang's indignant pout, "Does that answer your question?"

"...So you guys don't do _anything_ for fun?" she wondered.

"Oh, we have _plenty_ of fun things to do!" Yang assured her, counting off on her fingers, "There's plenty of movie theaters around the world, we've got tons of video games, there's Remnant: The Game…."

"Plus art galleries and plenty of talented singers and musicians," said Weiss, beaming with pride. " _I_ happen to have an excellent voice, if I do say so myself," the heiress boasted.

"Tech, _now_ who's humble?" Yang scoffed, eliciting an indignant squawk from Weiss in response.

"So what kind of video games do you have?" RJ asked eagerly, her eyes sparkling. There may not have been any sports in this crazy world she ended up in, but at least they still had _something_ for her to latch onto.

Yang was about to answer when a commotion a short ways away caught her (and the others') attention; it looked like two people were fighting over something, hsving a tug of war with the object.

"The heck is going on over there?" the teen asked, struggling to make out the conflict.

"It looks like they're arguing over bag of some kind," Weiss noted. "It's a man and a young girl, from what I can make out, and I think the man is a Faunus- And no, I'm not being racist, I can see bear ears on his head."

"...Is the girl a Faunus too?"

Weiss shook her head, "She's wearing a hooded cloak, I can't see her-" Then something clicked on her mind, "You don't think…?"

"Only one way to find out!" Yang rose from her seat, activating her gauntlets. "I'll be right back. Weiss, keep RJ safe!"

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"So then what happened?" Blake prompted. Sister had been regaling them with tales of her Yang's childhood, which Ruby was enjoying immensely, judging by how much she was trying to stifle her laughter, and Rosey too, for whatever reason.

Blake, on the other hand, was committing all this to memory for the next time Yang tried to annoy her with her nemesi- the laser pointer.

"Well," the older Ruby continued, "she was quite distraught, of course; after all, she'd worked quite hard on her macaroni portrait of our mother, and it was one of the first projects she'd done all on her own. I tried to tell her she could make another, better one, but you know how it is when you put all of your time and effort into something, only for it to be all for naught."

"Yeah, I know the feeling," Ruby sighed. "There was this one time when I...what's with the crowd?" she wondered, pointing to where a group of people had gathered. "Blake, can you hear what's going on?"

"It sounds like some kind of fight," she said, "and…." She hesitated for a moment, a look of mild shock blooming on her face. "It sounds like someone fighting with you and Yang."

Ruby raised an eyebrow and then ran towards the crowd, inadvertently dragging Rosey along with her. Blake and Sister shared a look and followed after the younger girls. After weaving through the throng of people (The phrase "'Scuse me!" and variations were repeated a lot.) they finally broke through, though by this point the fight was over; a battered looking Faunus was slumped against a storefront, little canaries circling his head. Yang was standing to the side, holding a handbag and looking kind of like Weiss when they found out they were shadowing Dr. Oobleck on a hunt. And, there was a girl who looked exactly like Ruby, holding a scythe blade at the Faunus warningly.

However, the strange part was that the blade seemed to be attached to her body where her arm normally was.

Weiss and RJ pushed through the crowd a moment later, having a similar reaction to Yang's.

The girl looked up, suddenly aware of the onlookers she'd garnered.

"...what?"

 _to be continued..._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _See? I told you those asides last time would pay off! (Ruby Tally: 5/8.) Meet Crescent Rose, "Cress" for short. I've had plans to include her character from the beginning, since it's directly inspired by that piece of drek fanfiction I mention in Chapter 1. To me at least, she's the most obvious OC concept of the bunch._

 _And before you all ask, no, this isn't going to be exactly like Soul Eater, since I have a few ideas of my own I'd like to use for the concept. (Props to the one reader who made the connection, though; I'm pretty sure I didn't tip my hand_ too _much….)_

 _Also, I've been thinking about including little OC profiles at the end of future chapters, since it would help me define all the characters better, and it's an extra something for y'all to enjoy as well. Would that be something you'd like to see?_

 _Oh, one more thing, please drop a review if you're able; I love hearing what people think of my writings, and I enjoy conversing with or explaining thing to you guy!_

 _Anywho, tune in next time; I plan on doing something interesting right off the bat!_


	5. She's such a brat!

_Back again, folks! Well, we got another character last time, let's see how Team RWBY deals with her..._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"...you're arm's a blade," Weiss choked out, pointing limply, " _how is that even possible!_ "

"Um...it just is?" she said, shrugging. She nodded at the Faunus, "So, is anyone gonna call the authorities or something?"

" _How can you have a blade for an arm?!_ " Weiss was now pointing more emphatically.

"Oh, it's not just a blade!" she informed the heiress, missing the point of Weiss's confusion, transforming the blade into a gun barrel. "See? It's also a gun."

Weiss just gawked, her mouth hanging open.

"I called the police!" a woman announced, waving her Scroll around. "Hey," she wondered, "are you girls sisters or something? Also, how do you do that thing with your arm-"

"Could you excuse us for a minute?" Yang asked, leaning in front of the Weapon Arm girl conspicuously. She tossed the woman the bag, "Give that to the police when they get here, K?"

"O-OK!" the woman nodded.

"Cool!" Then she grabbed the girl and dragged her off. "RJ, grab Weiss, will you?" she called over her shoulder.

"I-is s-something wrong?" Rosey asked worriedly.

Yang shook her head, "No, but something tells me we're going to have a lot of attention we don't want if we hang around here any longer. Come on, let's get back to Beacon."

"Weiss?" Ruby waved her hand in front Weiss's face, the heiress still in a daze, "You gonna be OK?"

"It's impossible…," she murmured, "how does that even…!"

"She'll be fine," Sister assured her younger counterpart, "my Weiss has the same problem; just give her a few minutes."

"So how come all of you look like me?" the girl asked, having shifted her arm back to normal.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

The group made it back to RWBY's room at Beacon without too much trouble, though they did draw some looks due to there being five similarly dressed girls walking together, and the newest girl, whose name the learned was Crescent Rose ("Not 'Ruby'?" "Pfft! Who'd name themselves after a rock?"), tended Ooh! and Aah! whenever they passed a dog.

"Open it, open it, open it, open it, open it!" she pleaded manically, bouncing up and down in place, "I wanna see the doggy!"

"OK. OK," Yang said, chuckling at Cress's exuberance. She place a hand on the living weapon's head in order to get her to stay still, "Hold your horses, Sport!"

"Sorry; I just really like doggies!"

"Hmm," Weiss hummed contentedly, "good to finally find someone else who appreciates our _darling_ little angel, Zwei."

"Speak for yourself…," Blake scoffed under her breath.

"He i-is p-pretty cute," Rosey said, the traces of a smile curling on her lips.

"True that," agreed RJ.

"Aw, don't be such a fraidy cat, Blake!" Yang comforted her Faunus partner, trying and failing to suppress her giggles.

Surprisingly, it was _Sister_ who smacked Yang upside the head

"Ow!"

"Puns are unseemly," she remanded the blonde, wagging a finger at her.

"And...open!" Ruby announced as the click of a lock was heard. She started to lead everyone inside before suddenly stopping short, freezing in mid stride.

"What's up, Rubes?" asked Yang, peeking out from behind her sister curiously. Everyone else followed suit a moment later.

"Well it's about time," an imperious and annoying looking Ruby exclaimed, her arms folded over her chest, "I've been waiting in this…." She looked like she was struggling to find the right word. "...closet of a room for _hours_ with this mangy mutt! What do you have to say for yourselves? ...and why do all of those girls look like me?"

Team RWBY and the alternate Ruby's just stared at the newcomer: instead of Ruby's normal red and black ensemble, she wore mostly white clothing, with the only bit of red on it was on the inside lining of her cloak, and white, heeled boots in place of Ruby's more practical ones. Her hair was done up in a tight bun, and she was holding what looked like a copy of Weiss's Myrtenaster.

"Where the heck are all these Ruby's coming from?!" Weiss shrieked abruptly, startling a few of the group (including the new Ruby).

"... _well_?" she demanded with a raised eyebrow, snapping her fingers impatiently, "Start explaining!"

Ruby was the first one to recover from her shock. "Um, you're Ruby- well, me… -from a parallel universe or something, and you somehow ended up in mine." She cocked her head to the side, "And for some reason you dress and act like Weiss."

"...Who?" the girl wondered, to which Ruby pointed at Weiss. She sneered, " _Please_ , if anything, this _peasant_ is dressing up like _me_."

"Um, excuse you?" Weiss said.

"You heard me, _Rose_ ; I don't know why you're not wearing your normal rags, but then I've always found the practices of the _lower class_ to be utterly unfathomable."

Weiss had to be held back by Yang to keep her from hitting the new girl.

"So what's your name?" Blake asked.

"And can someone get this _mutt_ away from me?" she demanded, keeping Zwei at bay with her weapon, "It keeps trying to sniff me!"

"Hey, she asked you a question, Ruby," Yang said, gesturing to Blake, "the least you could do is answer her!"

"I'm sorry, but do _you_ try to have a discourse with the flies that crawl on the garbage, or give the time of day to the dirt on the bottom of your shoe?" she countered, "You may associate with those _degenerate animals_ if you want, but _I'm_ perfectly happy keeping them in their proper place, thank you very much!"

Yang's eyes widened in shock. Not only was what this girl was saying absolutely _horrible_ , but she was saying it in her own sister's voice! It was...monumentally disconcerting, and even a little creepy; she would have slapped the girl if she weren't so taken aback by it.

Fortunate she didn't have to, because Weiss took on the responsibility, brushing past the brawler and backhanding the girl hard across her face.

"Whoa…!" was all Yang could say.

"Pimp slap for great justice!" RJ marveled.

"You OK?" Ruby wondered, concerned.

Weiss shook her hand, "Yeah, it just stings a little."

"Why'd you do that?" Blake asked; she had her arm around Rosey, the younger Faunus sniffling after hearing the harsh words of the new Ruby. "Not that I'm complaining; I would have done the same thing."

"She was just getting on my nerves…."

"Th-th-thank you…," Rosey told the heiress.

"*sigh*, don't mention it."

"You... _hit_ me…!" the new Ruby exclaimed, rubbing her cheek where Weiss hit her, "...how _dare you!_ " She whipped out her rapier and dropped into a stance like Weiss usually took when fighting, " _Nobody_ lays a hand on Rubin Schnee and lives to tell about it!" She lunged forward, thrusting the needle like sword directly at Weiss's center, clearly intent on killing her.

Weiss merely shifted out of the way at the last second, (Rubin's eyes going wide when she realized she missed), and formed a repulsion glyph to knock her off balance. When she was on the floor, Weiss made an attraction glyph to keep her in place.

"Well done, Weiss," Sister praised, nodding in approval. "Very skillfully done."

"It was nothing," Weiss said, waving dismissively For once, she was being genuinely humble, "it just stands to reason that I'd know how to counter my own techniques."

"OK, who are you and what have you done with Weiss?" Yang asked in mock horror.

Weiss gave the blonde a halfhearted sneer, "Cute."

"So what's your deal?" Cress knelt down next to Rubin, who was struggling to break out of the glyph. "You're a lot meaner than the rest of us."

Rubin declined to answer, continuing struggle against the invisible force that held her.

"...Welp, I got nothing," she shrugged, standing back up. She turned to the group, "Anyone else wanna give it a try?"

"Allow me," Sister offered, stepping forward. She gracefully knelt next to the struggling girl. "Miss Schnee, you've been quite hostile to us since we returned here; what could we have possibly done to offend you?"

Rubin ceased struggling for moment and glanced up, looking shocked, but she composed herself almost immediately.

"You mean aside from the animals playing at being people?" she answered, "There's also Rose over there trying to copy my look, the fact I was somehow apparently ripped from my own world and dropped in this upside down one, the fact that one of those incorrect copies of me is a _Faunus_ -" Rosey shrunk behind Blake as Rubin bit the word out. "-and as I stated before, that _dog_ hasn't stopped accosting me since I landed here." She pointed at Zwei, who was panting by Ruby's feet.

"*bark!*" Zwei yipped.

"I can understand your frustration being whisked away to an unfamiliar place with no explanation," the older Ruby said, "but that doesn't give you the right to act like a spoiled brat, or to demean others without just cause."

"I'm a Schnee, I can act however I want!" Rubin protested. "And they're _Faunus_ , that's _plenty_ reason!"

Sister sighed and stood back up. "I tried…," she said to herself, walking back over to join the group.

"OK, this is getting us nowhere fast," Weiss said, "she's clearly trouble, we need to think of something to do with her."

"I don't think beating her to a pulp is the answer," Ruby pointed out.

"I don't- ...who do you think I am, your sister?"

"Ouch, Weiss," Yang said flatly, "that _hurts."_

"You'll get over it."

"Maybe we could lock her in the bathroom," RJ suggested. "It has a lock, right?"

"Yeah," Ruby said, "only it locks from the _inside_."

"Oh…."

"Besides, she looks determined enough that she'd break out eventually," Yang pointed out, nodded her head towards a still struggling Rubin.

"Why not just leave her in that spell Weiss cast?" Cress wondered, "That seems to be working pretty good."

Weiss shook her head. "My glyphs don't last indefinitely," she explained, "and they're not indestructible either; she'll break out eventually if she keeps struggling, or it'll go away on its own, given enough time. Either way, it's only a temporary measure."

"'She' would prefer it if you wouldn't talk about me like I _wasn't_ right here, _peasants_!" Rubin shouted.

"You stay out of this!" Yang barked.

"Guys!" Ruby pleaded.

"...Yeah, Rubes?"

She twiddled her fingers. "I kinda hate to agree with her-"

"Hey!" Rubin shrieked indignantly.

"-but she sorta has a point; we shouldn't be treating her like a criminal."

"Finally," Rubin sighed, "someone moderately sensible!"

"Ruby, you _do_ remember she just tried to kill me a minute ago, right?" Weiss reminded the young team leader.

"Well, yeah, but…" Ruby shuffled sheepishly; she hadn't really thought farther ahead for that argument.

"Perhaps we should let someone in authority deal with this," Sister suggested, "we seem to be getting nowhere on our own."

"If it means me getting the proper respect I deserve, I'm all for it!" Rubin stated.

"Sounds better than anything else we've come up with," Yang shrugged.

"C-can I st-stay here?" Rosey asked, "Sh-she s-sorta scares me…."

"Of course." Blake patter the younger Faunus's shoulder. "I'll stay with you."

"Me too," Weiss said, "If I go with you I'll just end up punching Robin again."

" _It's_ Rubin _!"_

"I'll stay too," said RJ, "To be honest, I kinda want to see what video games you guys have here."

Yang tossed RJ her Scroll, "Here, you're gonna need this."

"So then I guess it's just gonna be me, Yang, Rubin, Sister, and Cress?" Ruby asked.

They all nodded.

"And will Miss Schnee promise not to cause any trouble?" Sister asked, looking pointed at Rubin.

Rubin huffed, "I suppose not. I mean, it's not like this place has such low standards that it would allow _more_ Faunus through its doors, much less let them roam around freely if it did!"

 _to be continued..._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _I did mention that some characters would be radically different from the normal Ruby, did I not? (Ruby Tally: 6/8) Meet Rubin Schnee; basically, she's Weiss if Weiss was like she was at the start of Volume 1 and never got better, plus a huge ass chip on her shoulder. (As a side note, I thought up_ sooooo _much back story for her! Probably more than any of the other OCs.)_

 _Also, I'm gonna put a hold on introducing new characters for a few chapters so I can let things breathe and set up the conflict. In the meantime, here's the first of the character profiles I mentioned!_

 **Ruby OC Name: Rosey**

 **Gimmick: Ruby as a Faunus (dog)**

 **Backstory: Born to Summer Rose (dog) and Taiyang Xiao-Long (Husky). Unfortunately, Taiyang was killed during a raid by Humans, leaving "Rosey" fatherless. For a while she lived happily with her mother and older sister Yang (fox), all things considered, until a fateful day when human soldiers killed Summer after she tried to pick up an apple that fell on the ground, and Yang after she tried to protect Summer. After that, Rosey ended up in Menagerie, the worst of the slums where the Faunus lived, where she eventually met her Uncle Qrow (wolf), who took her under his wing and taught her how to fight. She also became friends with Weiss (cat), until the two of them tried to sneak into a Human city to steal a jacket Weiss wanted and Weiss got caught. After that, she joined the White Fang and started fighting against the Humans, often trading blows with Blake Belladonna (human). On one occasion, she killed Weiss in front of Rosey. Before she ended up asleep in Ruby's bunk bed, she fell asleep in a box behind a grungy bar, clutching Crescent Rose to her chest.**

 **Quirks: skittish, shaky, timid, stutters, clingy, easily amazed.**

 _And that's the deal with Rosey: short, sweet, and concise. I'll be doing these profiles in the same order as the OCs' appearances, so next time it'll be RJ._

 _Anywho, next time, Rubin continues to be her charming self, and the girls play video games! (No, there will be now real life games here; this isn't turning into Reacts type story.)_


	6. Now that you're staying here

_Welcome back, everyone! Last time, we met a charming version of Ruby who was a supreme racist jerk. Fun times! Now the party's split again, so let's check in on the team headed up to Ozpin's office. (I don't think it's spoiling anything to say that's where they're heading.)_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Ozpin regarded the five girls standing in the middle of his office coolly, taking a sip of his coffee. He'd seen a lot of weird and amazing things in his life, though meeting copies of one of his students who were apparently from alternate versions of Remnant was definitely among the more unique experiences he'd had.

"...and that's what I've been through," the girl in a white version of Ruby Rose's outfit finished dramatically explaining her plight, complete with flamboyant gestures, "and now I'm being harassed these... _copycats_ , Rose playing dress up, and their _Faunus_. Could you _please_ help a poor girl who's been ripped from her safe, comfortable home?"

Ozpin raised an eyebrow as the girl looked up at him with pleading eyes.

"I'm sure this has been a trying experience for you, Miss Schnee," he said in his usual measured voice, "however, you should realize that this _isn't_ the Remnant you're familiar with. While racism is still a problem here, Faunus are no more second or third class citizens than you or I." He turned to the other Ruby's and Yang, ignoring Rubin's flabbergasted sputtering, "I'm guessing your entitled counterpart embellished a few detail, is that right?"

"Indeed," Sister nodded. "She neglected to mention that she- well...I'm hesitant to call it an _entirely_ unprovoked attack, but her response to being slapped by Weiss was quite disproportionate to the offense."

"Yeah, cause she was being a racist bitch," Yang added. "She kinda deserved it."

"Yang!" Ruby cried.

"What?" The blond threw her hand up defensively, "We were all thinking it!"

"Throwing around insults, however justified, will do nothing to help matters here," Sister admonished.

"What's a 'racist'?" Cress wondered.

"Do you _see_ what I have to deal with?" Rubin told Ozpin, pointing desperately at the other girls, "Blatant character defamation! You _have_ to do something about this!"

"Miss Schnee, you would do well to remember your place." Though he said in the same calm voice he always used, his words somehow carried a mountain of authority that caused Rubin to pause. "Putting the rest of your behavior aside for the moment," he continued, "it's abundantly clear that you tried to attack one of my students with clear intent to harm, and that is something I won't abide." He stood up and held out his hand, "Please hand over your weapon."

Rubin's hand immediately went to the hilt of her rapier. "If you want Eidlerote, you'll have to pry it from my cold, dead hands!" she declared.

Ozpin sighed. "I'd rather you gave it up voluntarily, Miss Schnee, I don't want to have to take it by force."

"Would it help if I relinquished my Crescent Rose as well?" Sister asked, removing the High Caliber Sniper Scythe from its holster and presenting it to the headmaster.

"Hmm," he considered, "you might be on the right track." He addressed Rubin directly, "If all of your counterparts agree to keep their weapons in storage, will you?"

Rubin grimaced, obviously at war with herself over the new offer. On one hand, she didn't want to part with the Multi Action Dust Rapier; she worked hard to earn it, and she didn't want to part with it for anything! But on the other hand, she could tell that she wasn't going to win this battle, wether with words or steel.

Finally, she scrunched her eyes shut so she wouldn't have to see it happen and presented Eidlerote to Ozpin.

"Thank you very much, Miss Schnee," he said as he accepted the sword. Sister then stepped forward and placed her weapon on Ozpin's desk. "Is that all of them?" He asked Ruby and Yang.

"Well, Rosey- the Faunus me -has one," the young team leader explained, "but...I don't know if she'll want to give it up."

"I'll have them put in an empty locker," Ozpin said, "you may tell her that should she need it, it can be summoned."

"Um…?" Cress said uneasily. She'd been quiet ever since the topic of weapons was brought up, "y-you're not gonna shove me in a locker too, are you?"

"Of course not," he chuckled, "It's obvious you're not a soulless object, so you don't need to be worried about being treated like one."

"Oh." She let out a huge sigh of relief. "Thanks."

"Think nothing of it." He sat down again, setting "Eidlerote" next to Sister's scythe. "Now," he said, folding his fingers together, "let's talk about your attitude, Miss Schnee."

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"Ooh! And a last minute speed boost takes the win of RJ!" RJ cheered as her onscreen avatar zoomed over the finish line. She jumped to her feet, doing a little victory dance. "Oh yeah!" she chanted, "Uh huh! I'm the best, I'm the best!" She pointed at Rosey, who was looking despondent at losing, "Better luck next time, _loser_!"

"I-it's a r-really h-hard game," the young Faunus protested, looking downward.

RJ retorted "Apparently not, cause I just kicked your sorry butt into next week!" She then proceeded to "raise the roof", going "Whoop whoop!" as she did.

Rosey (and her ears) drooped even further.

"That's not very sportsmanlike," Weiss admonished, trying to get her on screen vehicle unstuck as a timer counted down off to the side. After few seconds the letters "DNF" flashed across the screen and the game switched to the results of the race. "You sound like Yang and Ruby when they play Remnant: The Game."

"It's called 'trash talking'," the girl explained, waving to imaginary fans before grinning cheekily at the heiress, "and if you can't take it, just do better next time." She patted Weiss gently on her cheek, "Get good, OK?"

After staring for a few seconds Weiss shook her head and disconnected her Scroll, plopping down on Blake's bunk next to the Faunus, who was currently reading a novella called "Ten Little Roosters".

"Did you win?" Blake asked without looking up from her book.

"No," Weiss grumbled, "which figures. The stupid game cheats somehow, I know it!"

" _Or you could just suck,"_ RJ called over her shoulder.

"OK, she is _much_ too sassy for her own good!"

"It's fine, Weiss." Blake closed her book, "Let her be." She glanced over at the two Ruby's, now embroiled in another round of racing, smiling, "Actually, I think it will be good for Rosey to have the positive influence in her life."

"...that sounded really motherly," Weiss noted, looking at the Faunus weirdly.

"Oh...did it?" she asked, her cheeks reddening slightly. "How about that…?"

Eventually Weis shook head, her curiosity deflating as she flopped back on the mattress. "Nevermind, it's not like I have any right to pry." She exhaled, "Anyway, I wonder how Ruby and them are doing?"

Blake shrugged, "Ozpin is pretty shrewd, I'm sure he'll handle Rubin well enough."

"Yeah, that's what I was thinking too."

" _U-um, e-excuse me?"_

The two girls looked up and saw Rosey shuffling in front of the bed, nervously wringing her hands; RJ was busy loading up a new game.

"H-h-here's your S-scroll back," she said, handing the device to Blake, "Th-thanks for l-letting use it…."

"Not a problem." Blake accepted the device back. She noticed that the younger Faunus looked slightly apprehensive. "Did you not like that game?" she asked.

"N-no!" she exclaimed, "I-it was OK, but, u-um...c-can I ask you a question?" When Blake nodded, she asked "C-can I st-stay here? L-like, w-with you?"

Blake blinked at that.

"I suppose I don't have a problem with that," she said, setting her book down beside her, "If you don't mind me asking, what made you decide that?"

"Didn't you say something about your Blake being 'the worst of them all'?" Weiss added.

Rosey nodded meekly, "Y-yeah, b-but y-you're nothing l-like her; you're k-kind, and good, a-and friendly, and s-safe, and-" She stopped abruptly, her cheeks suddenly resembling her namesake. "I-it's just...nobody's t-treated me like that s-since...my m-mom…."

"Oh…," Blake realized, "...is that so…?"

"I'll, uh, be over there," Weiss said, heading back over to RJ ("Ready to get beat again, Princess?" " _Heiress!"_ ), leaving the two Faunus to themselves.

Blake's mind was racing, Weiss's offhand observation now seeming more accurate than before. Was she _really_ motherly? She wouldn't have said so herself, but he behavior around Rosey made a startling amount of sense when you looked at it like that: the special Faunus reassurance, her snapping at Weiss (more than usual, anyway), the way she'd reach around to comfort Rosey when the young Faunus hid behind her...she'd thought it was just a byproduct of racial solidarity, but now?

It reminded her of when she just a kid, when her and Adam only had each other. He would often behave the same way she was now.

"U-um, B-Blake?" Rosey waved her hand in front of the older girl's face timidly. "H-hello?"

"Huh?" Blake snapped out of her thoughts, focusing back on Rosey's face. "Sorry," she said, "I was thinking about something...a-anyway, are you sure you want to stay here; aren't there people from your world who care about you?"

"N-not really…," Rosey shook her head, "m-my mom, my dad, and my sister a-are all- ...a-and I b-barely g-get to see Uncle Qrow, e-even though I hear about him all the t-time…." She stood tall, looking more ardent and determined than Blake remembered seeing from her since they found her that morning, "I've m-made up m-my mind about th-this; I d-don't want to go b-back to all th-that s-suffering…!"

Despite the brave face she was putting on, Blake could see the tears starting to well up in the corners of Rosey's eyes.

It reminded her way too much of herself.

"...OK," she relented, pulling the younger Faunus onto her lap and hugging her protectively, "if you want to stay here, that's fine with me."

"Th-thank you," Rosey said, hugging her back.

After a few minutes of silence and the sounds of Weiss and RJ sniping at each other, Blake heard " _Aw, that's_ adorable _!"_

She quickly looked up and saw Yang wearing the cheesiest grin imaginable, with Ruby, Sister, Cress, and a petulant looking Rubin standing behind her.

"Wh-wh-when did you get back?" she asked shakily, gently urging Rosey off her.

"Oh, just now," the blonde said before raising an eyebrow, "I gotta say, I never would have expected you to have such a doting side to you; I always figured that was more Weiss's thing with how much she squees over Zwei."

"Are you trying to imply something, Xiao-Long?" Weiss accused, looking over her shoulder; RJ took advantage of the momentary distraction to fire a power up at Weiss's character.

Zwei just yawned from his bed.

"So how did it go with Ozpin?" Blake asked, hoping to change the subject.

"About as well as could be expected," Sister explained as her younger counterparts (sans Rubin) went to join Weiss and RJ. "He explained to Rubin that her behavior wouldn't be tolerated if she kept it up, and he took away her weapon; Rosey and I have to hand ours over as well."

"Wh-what?!" Rosey squeaked, once again inching behind Blake.

"It was how we were able to convince Miss Rubin-" Said girl scoffed at being referred to by her first name. "-to comply with the decision." She help up her Scroll, "Don't worry, I am able retrieve them should the need arise."

"Also," Yang added, pushing Rubin forward, "this one has something she wants to say. Right, Rubes?"

"It's _Rubin_ ," she insisted on reflex. Begrudgingly, she faced the two Faunus, visibly struggling to say her piece. "I'm…," she tried. "...my behavior earlier wasn't becoming of a member of the Schnees," she eventually managed, "so I apologize for that. ...no matter how much it was deserve- Owowowowow!"

"Quit while you're ahead," Yang cautioned, pinching Rubin on her ear. Then she let go, "And…?"

"Uhg, _fine!_ " She turned to Weiss, "And I'm sorry for trying to kill you." She turned back to Yang, " _There_ ; are you satisfied now, brute?"

"Weiss," she asked, "was that good enough?"

Weiss bit back a curse at receiving another "DNF" and redirected her attention to Yang and Rubin. "Yes, I accept your apology."

"Sweet!" Yang then jumped up to her own bunk and laid back with her arms begins her head, "Nothing to do now but wait for dinner!"

Not even three seconds after she declared that there was a knock on the door.

When no one else moved to answer it, Blake got up and opened the door, revealing a man in coveralls holding cans of paint and plaster in one hand, and brushes in the other.

"I was told to brings these here," he said, handing them to Blake.

"Thank you."

He nodded and was about to leave when he noticed the larger than normal number of girls (who all looked strangely similar to each other for some reason). "Um…?"

"It's a long story," Blake sighed. "Thanks again for bringing these; should we just leave them outside when we're done?"

"Uh, yeah, that's fine…." He nodded again, bidding Blake a good day, and walked off with a slightly befuddled look on his face.

"Come on, Rosey," she said after setting the supplies down and closing the door, "you can help me fix that hole you made earlier."

 _to be continued..._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Yeah, I forgot about that little detail too. Fortunately, that's the last we'll see of that hole, so you can all sleep easy knowing it was fixed._

 _Anywho, it's time for another profile, this one featuring the most normal (comparatively) of the OCs._

 **Ruby OC name: RJ/Ruby Jones**

 **Gimmick: Ruby as a normal, everyday teenager from Earth**

 **Backstory: She grew up with her mother, father, and older half sister Barb, having a fairly normal life until she was 12, when her family decided to start hosting foreign exchange students and foster children, of which there are currently 6 borders: Katrin, Belden, Miles, Jen, Samantha, and Lie Ren. She gets along well with all of them, though sometimes she and Sam fight, mostly due to Sam being something of a prankster and loose cannon. She has a bit of a competitive streak that manifests when she plays sports or videogames, and can be quite sassy when she trash talks. She also tries to play the Peacemaker whenever her friends argue.**

 **Quirks: easy going, quipy, sometimes stern, natural mediator.**

 _A little shorter than the last one, but that's what happens when you live in suburbia instead of a totalitarian, dystopian nation state._

 _So, by now, I'm sure a good portion of you have seen Volume 3, episode 12, and let me just that say that...I'm OK with it. (I know, I'm as surprised as you are about that!) I probably won't explore past Volume 3, episode 5 until Volume 4 gets started in the fics I write, but maybe I'll do a one shot or two. I don't know. We'll see._

 _Next time, the girls are going to have another day on the town! I wonder where they'll end up? (And in the meantime, be on the lookout for my contribution to the wave of Volume 3, episode 12 "fix fics"; I think you'll actually enjoy what I have in store!)_


	7. Learning some new pt1

_Hey everyone, welcome back! So who would have expected Blake's maternal instincts to awaken, huh?_

 _Let's see if anything else comes of it, huh?_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

It was an interesting ordeal trying to figure out the sleeping arrangements in the RWBY dorm that night; when Rubin wasn't wholesale refusing to even touch the beds ("I will _not_ 'just deal with it'; when was the last time these were sanitized, hmm?") she adamantly insisted on claiming one of the bunks for her exclusive use ("I only share my _opinion_!"). Eventually they agreed to let Rubin have Ruby's bunk, while Ruby stayed in Yang's bunk for the night, Weiss let RJ stay with her, and Blake let Rosey share her bed; Sister and Cress both insisted they were fine sleeping on the floor until better accommodations were found, though they were each provided with a pillow.

The next day they all sat around one of the tables in the cafeteria, enjoying breakfast.

"So what do you guys want to do today?" Yang asked. "We've got nothing but time to kill, I'm open to anything."

"I was under the impression that classes were still going on," Sister pointed out. She scooped up another strawberry from her oatmeal and popped it in her mouth, chewing purposefully. She swallowed. "Is that not the case?"

"Nah!" Yang said, taking a bite of toast, "They're postponed until after the Vytal Festival." She took another bite. " _Why,"_ she asked, slightly muffled, " _it'f not goin' on foh you?"_

"No, it's still a few week away for me."

"What's it like?" Cress asked, "This essential festival, I mean?"

"'Vytal'," Blake corrected the living weapon, "It's a festival that celebrates the different cultures of the world."

"There's dances, parades, a plethora of different booths and stalls the showcase international customs and cultures…," Weiss listed off, polishing an apple on her sleeve, "and a couple days ago there was a combat tournament that just finished."

"Which I won!" Yang added proudly.

Weiss scoffed, " _Barely…."_

"Hey, I had everything under control; wearing an opponent down by dodging is a legitimate strategy!"

"That would be more believable if your arm wasn't in a sling for that fight!"

While the two of them proceeded to argue about the semantics of "legitimate strategies" Cress's face lit up in excitement. "That sounds just like the Final Exam Festival at The Beacon!" she said, her eyes sparkling in delight.

"I'll take your word for it," Blake said, before directing the conversation back on track, addressing the group at large, "So does anyone want to do anything particular?"

"U-um, c-can we go to th-the library?" Rosey asked, meekly raising her hand.

"That sounds like a good idea," Sister agreed, "I second the motion."

"I want to go _anywhere else_ ," Rubin said emphatically, for once holding her tongue. Her insinuations were transparently clear, but they at least appreciated the effort.

"As much as I hate doing so," RJ piped up, "I don't really want to be stuck in some dusty old library all day." As she took a bite of her cereal her face brightened. "How about we go to that Vytal Festival thing?" she suggested, "it's been _ages_ since I've been to something like that!"

"Ooh, good idea!" Yang praised, "It'll give me a chance to mingle with all my fans!"

"...I wonder how much of your hair is taken up by your swelled head?" Weiss pondered.

"B-but...I w-wanted to see the library…," Rosey whimpered dejectedly, her ears drooping.

"Uh...hey! Why don't we do both?" Ruby proposed. "Blake, Rosey and Sister could go to the library, and the rest of us can hang out at the Vytal Festival 'till they're done."

" _I_ have no objections," Rubin said, sticking her nose in the air.

RJ shrugged happily, "Sounds good to me!"

"Same here," Yang said. She glanced at Weiss, "Et tu, Ice Queen?"

" _Seriously, I'm gonna find whoever started that stupid nickname…!"_ Weiss muttered under her breath before addressing the blonde, "Yes, I don't have a problem with that."

"That seems like a suitable compromise," Sister noted agreeably, "I will acquiesce to the decision."

Cress said nothing, her sparkling eyes and elated smile were confirmation enough.

"Blake, Rosey?" Ruby asked, "You guys OK with that?"

Blake turned to Rosey, who nodded, then turned back to the group. "Yes, we are."

"Yes!" Yang cheered, "Pizza in a Cup, here we come!"

"That sounds _disgust- Owowowowow!_ "

Yang pinched Rubin's ear, smiling deviously.

"Oh, you are _so_ trying some!"

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Despite the the tournament being over, the Vytal Festival was still in full swing. Now that the what was arguably main attraction of the event was over, the fairgrounds were packed with crowds of people looking for a delicious treat or a taste of the other three Kingdoms they wouldn't get to under normal circumstances, wanting to make up for lost time. There was a shooting gallery modeled after Atlas Academy, a Mistrali training arena where people could fight each other or a repurposed Atlas Kight, a stage with a popular band from Vacuo playing, and the many, many food stands and booths serving their wares.

"Banzai!" Yang declared, digging into her Pizza in a Cup with aplomb.

" _Banzai!"_ the others followed, digging into their own fairground treats. (Deep fried cookies, for those wondering.)

Only Weiss and Rubin didn't join in, both looking disgusted at the spectacle.

"I will _never_ understand how they can eat that swill…," Weiss sighed.

"For once, Rose, we _actually_ agree something."

"I keep telling you, that's not my name!" Weiss protested. "I'm _Weiss Schnee_ , got it? I'm not whoever my equivalent from your world is."

"Well, you look _exactly_ like Shiro Rose," the debutant insisted, giving weis the child shoulder, "so that's what I'm going to call you."

Weiss sighed, wishing Sister were here to help deal with the petulant Ruby; the brat reminded her a lot of how she was before coming to Beacon, though even less restrained than she was, which was saying something.

"Can I ask you something?" she asked as Rubin pretended to find her nails incredibly interesting.

"You _may not_ ," she replied snidely, "but I _doubt_ that's going to stop you."

 _Gee, thanks,_ Weiss thought. "What was it like for you growing up?"

Rubin scoffed. "Tch, why should _you_ care?" she wondered.

"Because I want to understand where you're coming from," she explained. "That doesn't mean I'll agree with your reasoning, but maybe we can try to find a compromise if it turns out you have to stay here for a while."

"Don't do me any favors." After thinking for a minute, Rubin said "... _fine_! I don't know what good it will do, but if there's a chance for you peasants to finally give me the respect I deserve…."

Weiss graciously refrained from pointing out how much Rubin was missing the point.

"Well," the debutant began, "I grew up in Atlas, of course, in the Schnee Manor. I was given whatever I wanted: toys, clothes, servants, the best tutors, nothing was off limits." She let out a tired breath, "Not that any of it really mattered…. Herr Schnee was alway too busy running his damn company to be bothered with anything else, even his own daughter. And no matter how much I excelled, how much I tried to be the perfect Schnee, I could never get him to acknowledge me."

So far, Rubin's story was pretty similar to Weiss's own. However, there was one thing about it that didn't quite fit.

"You said 'Herr Schnee'," Weiss noted, "not Father?"

"Uh, _duh_!" Rubin said tactfully, "You think that man would ever let a _bastard_ call him 'father', huh dolt?"

"You're a-!" Weiss realized, finally starting to put the pieces together. _Well, that explains the chip in her shoulder._ "I'm sorry."

"Don't be," she retorted, "it's not like I _asked_ Herr Schnee to fool around with some peasant _tramp_ to conceive me, did I? Not my fault I had to grow with people _constantly_ muttering under their breath what a disgrace I was?" She huffed, "Well, if his plan was to make me suffer, he damn well succeeded, didn't he?"

While Rubin pouted, Weiss looked back over at the rest of their group; Yang was pooring the rest of her junk food into her mouth, and Ruby and her doppelgängers were playing with their cookies, having bitten them into little puppets.

"Hey!" Rubin snapped, "Don't ignore me when I'm giving you my sob story!"

Weiss _really_ wanted smack the little brat upside her head, but that would defeat the entire purpose of this exercise.

"I'm listening," she said neutrally, turning back to the young debutant.

"That's better. Anyway, after I got Eidlerote I applied to Beacon Academy and left in the first airship I could find. I _thought_ things would get better since I wouldn't have to worry about feeling like a freak in my own skin, but instead I just got a whole batch of _new_ problems to deal with!"

"...OK," Weiss said, "I get why you think you have something to prove, ...but that still doesn't explain why you hate the Faunus so much."

For a moment Weiss thought she saw pain flash across Rubin's face, but it was just as quickly replaced with her usual haughty, superior expression.

"Um, because they're _Faunus_!" she condescendingly explained, "They're animals that play at being Human! If I had my way, I'd cage every last one of those stinking furriers-!"

"Never mind," Weiss raised her hand for the debutant to stop before she could get going on another racist tirade, "I think I get the gist."

Rubin looked like she wanted to rebuke the heiress, but she once again held her tongue.

"Well then, why'd you even _ask_?" she eventually scoffed before going back to examining the finer points of her finger nails.

Weiss _really_ wished Sister were here right now….

About a minute later Yang walked up to them holding another monstrosity that was Pizza in a Cup.

"Check it out, Rubes!" she said, causing the white clad girl to bristle at the nickname, "They accidentally gave me two of these when I ordered mine, so guess what you're gonna do…!"

"I'll do no such thing!" she protested, eying the food like it would but her.

However, before Yang could insist (forcibly if necessary) they heard a commotion elsewhere in the fairgrounds, and soon people came running from the direction.

"Hey, uh, what's going on?" RJ asked worriedly, "Are people _supposed_ to look like they're running from one of those Grimm things?"

"I don't think so…," Ruby said, equally as worried. Her worries were mitigated somewhat when she noticed a squad of Atlesean Knights heading towards the commotion, but personal experience told her that if it really was a Grimm attack, there was only so much the robots could do. "We need to go help them," she stated, already running after the automatons.

"Wait for me!" Cress called, running after Ruby.

"Come on!" Yang shouted, following suit. She let go of the Pizza in a Cup, which spun around in the air for a moment before falling to the ground.

Weiss was about to do the same when she noticed RJ trembling. "What's wrong?" she asked.

"I don't- ...well, I'm not superpowered like the rest of you guys are," she whimpered, rubbing her elbows, "What if it tries to attack me?"

Weiss sighed and grabbed the teenager's hand, pulling her along behind her.

"Just stay close to me," she told RJ, "If worst comes to worst, I'll hold it off while you find somewhere to hide." Then she turn to the last remaining Ruby, "Rubin!"

"What is it, _Rose_?" she asked.

"Do you want to earn actual respect?" Weiss asked her, continuing before waiting for a response, "Then follow us."

A few seconds passed, and Rubin reluctantly stood up and followed them. "This _better_ be worth it," she warned.

"It will be," she assured her, taking out her Scroll.

There was a call she needed to make.

 _to be continued..._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _So, some people have commented on how much of a bitch Rubin is. Well, yes she is, that's the point; the story would be kind of boring if there wasn't any obstacles for the girls to deal with, wouldn't it? (And I'm holding back with her! If you want to see what a_ REALLY _messed Ruby and friends are like, check out "Stark Contrast" by OrangeGalen. Trigger Warning if you do, it's not for the faint of heart. Just...chapters 4-6, man….) And again, I mentioned before that some of the OCs would be radically different, did I not? Also, for those wondering, I do have a reason why Rubin hates the Faunus so much, but I'll save that for her profile; I think she's a bit backstory'd out at the moment._

 _But enough about that, let's learn about the oldest of the OCs so far._

 **Ruby OC name: Sister**

 **Backstory: She grew up on Patch Island with her Mom and Dad, with Summer teaching her from an early age. When she was three years old, Taiyang brought home a baby that had been abandoned by her mother, named Yang. She and Yang grew close as they grew older, though Yang never got over her shyness, despite her older sister's gentle encouragement. She and her, mother also had a good relationship, Summer teaching her about etiquette and the like. She was taught how to fight by an old friend of the family, Qrow Branwen, and at seventeen she was accepted into Beacon Academy, along with her younger sister. She was made team leader after Initiation, and is always trying to help Yang open up and make new friends.**

 **Quirks: graceful, composed, level headed, kind, intelligent.**

 _In terms of deviation from the original character, Sister is the closest to how Ruby is normally. (Except, you know, more graceful, less clumsy, and older.)_

 _So, apparently I wasn't clear enough at the end of chapter 1 when I said I already had all the OCs planned out for this story, so I'ma just set the record straight;_ _ **I already have all the OCs planned for this story.**_ _And just so there's no confusion,_ _ **I'm not accepting suggestions for additional OCs,**_ _so with all due respect, please stop suggesting them. (However, if you have an idea, I'd love to see what y'all can do with it!)_

 _I do like getting reviews though; it's nice to know what people think of what I write, and I always welcome constructive criticism._

 _And next time, we'll shift focus and see what the trio at the library's been up to!_


	8. Learning some new pt2

_Guess who's back...Team RWBY and the Rubettes! This time, we're going to look in on the three girls that decided to head over to the library._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Some time earlier..._

Rosey's eyes sparkled as she beheld the rows upon rows of books in the Vale Public Library, zipping excitedly from shelf to shelf, trying to take everything in at once.

"Th-th-this is...!" she marveled, spinning around rapturously in the middle of the foyer, "I-it's even b-better th-than I imagined...!"

"It is something," Blake agreed, "isn't it?" She could understand why the young Faunus was so enamored with the library, growing up on the streets like she had. Granted, she wasn't quite as repressed as Rosey had been, but she still understood where Rosey was coming from. "Go ahead and look around," she told her, "just remember not to be too loud."

Rosey nodded emphatically and zoomed happily into the forest of books.

"It's...somewhat odd to see her so excited and full of energy," commented Sister, "she's normally more maudlin and timid."

Blake nodded, "She's had a lot of bad things happen to her." She hesitated for a moment, "Apparently, the me from her world is incredibly anti-Faunus and did some bad things to her; I don't know what they were though, she was upset enough when she first woke up in our room."

Sister looked contemplative. "Hmm, I see…." She glanced in the direction where Rosey disappeared, "How do you suppose that happened, her showing up in your Ruby's bed?"

"...I don't know. We were all really drunk before it happened; I can't even remember how we got back to our room, let alone anything else we might have done."

"Yes, that is troubling," Sister nodded. "If you don't mind, I'm going to do some research on the subject; it was somewhat disconcerting to walk through a door in Beacon and suddenly end up in a boutique all the way in Vale."

"OK, I'll go find Rosey then."

As Sister headed over to an information terminal, Blake started walking past the shelves, glancing down the aisles for any sign of the knowledge starved Rosey.

Blake wouldn't admit it to anyone, but her heart skipped a beat when she saw the younger Faunus's face light up when they stepped inside the building, like she'd just been told she'd inherited a trillion Lien. It was comforting to know that she was still capable of feeling joy even after the terrible hand at Life she'd been dealt. It made Blake want to try and see what else could elicit a similar reaction from the girl.

 _I wonder if she likes tuna?_ the cat Faunus wondered as she peered down another aisle.

After a few more minutes of searching she finally located Rosey. The young Faunus was slumped on the floor next to a pile of comic books, her previous energetic glee all but replaced with her usual melancholy state, holding one of them open limply in her hands.

"Rosey, what's the matter?" she asked.

"I...c-can't read…," she whimpered, "I was s-so excited, a-and I forgot th-that…." Her eyes sparkled with unspent tears.

"It's OK," Blake knelt beside her, "there's nothing wrong with that."

"Y-yes it is!" she protested, "For m-my whole life, I've always w-wanted to v-visit places like this, because I th-thought that m-maybe it could help me ch-ch-change things for us F-Faunus, but…." She finally broke down sobbing, letting the book fall to the floor.

Blake drew Rosey into a tender hug, rubbing the back of her head comfortingly. "Shh," she said, "it's alright; I'll read to you, and later I can start teaching you how read on your own." She rocked a little, "OK? We'll bring some books back with us to our room so you can practice. How's that sound?" She felt Rosey nod her head. "Good. Now, let's find a place to sit do I can read these to you." She helped Rosey to her feet, the younger Faunus nodding her consent. They found a comfortable seat big enough for the both of them and sat down, Rosey snuggling close to her older Faunus.

They read for hours, with Rosey often interrupting to ask what words meant or to ask why a character was doing what they did. Blake would often make Rosey read back the simpler words to her, teaching her what sounds the letters made on their own and in combination with other letters; every time the younger Faunus read something correctly, Blake's heart would swell with pride.

After a while, Rosey looked up. "Um, B-Blake...c-can I a-ask you a question?"

"Of course you can," she said, marking their place in the book, "What's on your mind?"

"W-well…." She looked down again, her face jumping from one emotion to the next. "Um, d-don't take this the wrong w-way, b-but wh-why are you being s-so nice to m-me?"

Blake was taken aback by the question. She'd wondered that herself, once or twice, but to hear Rosey ask it with drooping ears and those scared, pitiful eyes of hers….

"Do I need a reason?" she asked in return, "Anyway, what brought this on all of a sudden?"

Rosey blushed a little, bopping her pointer fingers together. "B-because, well...y-you're not like m-my Blake," she said eventually, "I mean, y-you look l-like her, but everything you d-do is like Mo- ...l-like my m-mother…."

 _Her too, huh?_ Blake thought wryly.

"...d-do you r-remember the f-friend I told you about at the m-mall?" she asked. Blake nodded. "Well, I...s-sorta lied about that...," she explained, "I s-saw her one more t-time after sh-she was taken, r-r-right before she was...I-it was my Blake B-B-Belladonna th-that did it; I n-never really trusted Humans before, a-and after that…." She shook her head. "Th-that's why I attacked you wh-when I woke up."

Blake's heart nearly broke.

After a several seconds of uncomfortable silence, she asked, awkwardly, "...could you tell me about your family? I never really had one growing up."

"O-OK, I g-guess…." Rosey thought for a moment, "Well, I never r-really knew my f-father, so i-it was just me, Mom, and Yang. She- my m-mom, sh-she would always s-super hard to mark sure w-we had f-food to eat." She sniffed, "S-sometimes, she would f-find clothes and st-stuff for us, l-like my cloak, a-and Yang's bracelets, and once, sh-she actually found a w-wallet that still h-had money in it; we h-had actual meat th-that night for dinner…." She paused for a moment, wiping a tear from her eye. "She was like...s-supermom…."

 _That definitely sounds like Summer_ , Blake thought, recalling her conversation with Yang before the Beacon Dance.

"She sounds amazing," the cat Faunus said, to which Rosey nodded in agreement. "What about Yang, what was she like?"

Rosey grinned, "She w-wasn't scared of a-anyth-thing! Whenever a-anyone else would harass us sh-she would always beat them up, a-and she was always so c-cool!" She quickly dug through a small pouch on her belt and took out a brass bracelet, showing it to Blake. "Th-this was one o-of hers."

Blake took the ornament and turned it over in her hand. It looked sort of like Ember Celica in its inactive form, which is to say a solid band of brass with a diamond shape on top; it was much, much simple than her partner's weapons, though.

As she handed the memento back to Rosey, Sister came jogging up, looking slightly distraught.

"Pardon me," she said, "but there seems to be some trouble at the Vytal Festival."

"What kind of trouble?" Blake asked, urging Rosey to her feet.

"According to Weiss, there's apparently a Grimm running loose in the fairgrounds. She neglected to specify which kind, but it's bad enough that she requested Rubin's Eidlerote; I'd recommend we make haste and lend our help before things get out of hand."

"Right," Blake nodded. As they headed for the exit, she turned to Rosey, "We'll come back later and take some books out, OK?"

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Cinder paced around the warehouse that the White Fang was currently using for their latest temporary bar, looking extremely agitated and annoyed. Her plans had fallen apart during the Doubles round of the tournament when Pyrrha Nikos _hadn't_ been chosen to fight, instead putting their scraggly team leader in her place, and then letting him move up to the Singles round.

And the worst part was that his Semblance was _completely uncondusive_ to causing chaos like the Mistrali's was, allowing him to win over the robot girl from Atlas.

She's been pacing for the last hour, taking fine toothed comb to every facet of her plan, looking for even a minuscule detail she might have overlooked. But, no matter how hard she looked, no matter the angle she came at it from, the fact remained that her plan had fallen apart.

 _Those stupid kids!_ she fumed, _Why couldn't they just be good little pawns and behave like I predicted they would?_

There were a few White Fang grunts in the area with her, staying far away lest she decided to take her rage out on them.

"You're gonna wear a hole in the floor if you keep that up," Mercury quipped, sitting on an empty Dust crate as he worked on his leg the blond wrecked. Emerald was standing next to him, sharpening the blades on her guns.

Without looking Cinder formed a fireball and hurled it at the silver haired boy, knocking the tool from his hand.

"Hey!"

"Serves you right," Emerald said, continuing with her own work like nothing had happened.

"Humph," he grunted, kicking his tool back up with his good leg, "Like you're one to talk; it's not like you got caught by a _technicality_ like registering your _actual Semblance- OH WAIT!_ "

"Cinder said it wouldn't matter!" she protested, "Not until after it was too late to do anything about it, anyway!"

" _I got my leg broke!_ " he shouted, "Do you know how much of a pain it is to-"

" _ENOUGH!_ " she screamed, a pillar of fire erupting from the floor in front of the youngsters, "It doesn't matter _which_ of you messed up!" She continued her pacing. "What's important _now_ is that we try to salvage what advantage we have left," she said, finally taking a seat in front of the large map of Vale. She leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees, "I'm open to suggestions…."

"Um…?" Emerald struggled to think of ideas, "...we still have the virus, right? Maybe we could use that somehow?"

Cinder thought for a moment. "...Yes, that's still in play." She tapped her fingers together, the wheels in her mind began to turn. "However, we still need a diversion for that to truly be effective." She suddenly got an idea, "What's happening in the next couple days?"

"Uh, the Festival ends?" Mercury put forth.

"And _how_ is it going to end?" she pushed.

"...oh!" Emerald exclaimed, snapping her fingers. "That's perfect!"

" _Exactly…!_ "

Suddenly they heard a commotion coming from elsewhere in the room, like someone banging on one of the crates.

"The hell is that?" Emerald wondered.

"Maybe one of the mongrels locked themselves in one of the bigger containers," Mercury shrugged.

Ignoring her indolent subordinate, Cinder got up and headed towards the source of the noise, allowing herself a small bit of pleasure as the White Fang shrunk out of her way. She found the source almost immediately; it was someone trapped inside a container, judging by how it was shaking with the sound of every hit. She grabbed a nearby crowbar and quickly pried the top off; inside the box was girl in wearing a red cloak, her hair a dark brown with red at the tips, holding a stick of some kind.

"And how did you get in here?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

The girl glanced up, looking scared for a moment before recognition dawned and she locked herself around Cinder's waist.

Needless to say, this wasn't the reaction Cinder was expecting.

" _Mhastina, sala Ruvys latritora sovin va!_ " the girl cried, " _Immen sala Ruvys soia espiso Mhastina e freeht temmin, sala Ruvys fella motin!_ "

Nor was she expecting the girl to speak in gibberish, either.

"Cinder?" Emerald called, jogging over, "Is everything-" She stopped when she saw the girl attached to her mentor. "OK, who's she? ...and why does she look like that pipsqueak with the scythe?"

"Your guess is as good as mine," the imperious woman said, still a bit shocked at the sudden and mostly unwarranted affection, "she's not the same person as her, though, that much is clear."

" _Ah? Mhastina?_ " she asked curiously, looking up, " _Ohn merrin, sala Ruvys!_ "

"I'm sorry, dear," she said, slowly, "I can't understand you."

The girl cocked her head to the side, before stating " _Irsa!_ " and detaching herself from Cinder. She closed her eyes and, muttering under her breath, drew paths from her ears and forehead to her mouth with flowing motions, faint, sparkling red streams appearing briefly. Then she spoke again, this time perfectly understandable.

"Master, what is this place?" she asked, "It is all cold and metallic...and how come you could not understand me before?"

"...'Master'?" Emerald wondered aloud.

 _Master…!_ Cinder thought, rolling the name around in her mind; she _really_ liked the sound of it.

"Emerald, go find Adam, I want to inform him of our new plan," she told the green haired girl.

"But I-"

"Now."

Emerald grimaced, but followed the order anyway.

"As for you," she said, looking directly at the girl, "that was an interesting trick you just did. I wonder what else you're capable of...?" The girl's eyes lit up in excitement.

"Oh, I have been working some new techniques in my spare time, Master, let me show you!"

 _to be continued..._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Ooh, another future OC to wonder about until I get around to writing their proper introduction! I will say, and y'all might have already picked up on this, that this one is possibly the most radically different OC of them all, at least on the surface._

 _Anyhow, let's look at the Ruby who's literally a living weapon who TOOOOOTALLY isn't ripped directly from Soul Eater! (Seriously, I only realized the connection AFTER I thought up the concept!)_

 **Ruby OC Name: Crescent Rose a.k.a. Cress**

 **Backstory: Born and raised around Living Weapons her whole life, Crescent Rose developed a strong sense of justice, along with a desire to make the world of The Remnant safe from the Creatures of Grimm, and applied to The Beacon to become a Grimm Huntress, getting accepted in two years early on account her relation to her Uncle. Because of this, she hasn't learned how to fully Weaponize herself yet, and can only transform part of herself at a time. Despite this, she's shown a high aptitude at working tandem with other Weapons that borders on genius, wielding them with great skill. While students of The Beacon are encouraged to mingle, Cress often hangs around and goes on missions with her roommates: her sister Ember Celica, the aloof and mysterious Gambol Shroud, and Myrtenaster of the Schnee brand. (Cress calls her "Myrty" for short.) She also has a small pet dog she named "Doggy".**

 **Quirks: cheerful, curious, uncomplicated, strong sense of justice, likes dogs. A lot.**

 _In terms of character growth, Cress probably has the shallowest, with only Sister having less. She might have a moment of some kind later on, we'll see what happens._

 _So, I've been toying around with the idea for a while, and I've decided to do a bunch of Bonus chapters after the main story is done; originally I was only planning on doing one (which I'm still going to write), but the more I delve into these OCs and their backstories, the more I want to play around with their respective home worlds, so that's what I'm going to do. Aside from my original idea, I plan of doing a chapter for each of the OCs in their respective worlds, either pre- or post-convergence, and one focusing on some of the RWBY characters I haven't included in the story yet. There may be others if I get any good enough ideas, we'll see._

 _But before I can do that, the girls need to deal with the commotion at the fairgrounds. I wonder what kind of Grimm it will be?_


	9. A Fair fight

_And here we are, the next chapter of Distorted Mirror Images, peeps! Well, we've had a couple chapters of character development and foreshadowing (Teehee, I know stuff that you guys don't!~), so how about some action to spice things up?_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"Do we even _know_ what kind of Grimm it is?" Rubin asked. She, Weiss and RJ were pushing their way through the crowd, who were running the opposite way.

"Does it really matter?" RJ wondered, "You guys are gonna kill it either way, right?"

"True," Weiss said without looking back, "but remind me to give you a remedial course on the Grimm when this is over."

Eventually they were able to push through the crowd and reach the source of the commotion, and were surprised to see that, no, it _wasn't_ a Grimm that was causing people to run away.

"Are...are Grimm supposed to look so human?"

Rubin smacked her head at RJ's question, "That's because she _is_ human, you dunce!..."

Weiss was momentarily taken aback by the sight, ignoring Rubin. Among a field of what used to Atlesean Knights were Ruby, Yang, and Cress, all fighting (by all outward indications) an adult human woman. Her outfit looked somewhat like Yang's, though with darks and blacks instead of bright colors like the brawler liked to wear, and had a more military like aesthetic to it. She wore pistols on each hip and a knife under her arm, but her most notable weapon looked like a more wicked version of Ruby's Crescent Rose, with jagged edges and serrated blade on the scythe. She also wore a red hood that hid her face in shadows.

And she _clearly_ outmatched the three girls fighting her, constantly keeping them on the defensive while never letting up on her a tracks for even a second.

"So, I'm just gonna...over there," RJ announced, ducking behind a booth that had been overturned.

This snapped Weiss out of her daze, and she immediately started analyzing the situation.

"Um, _excuse me_?" Rubin snapped, "How am I supposed to fight without my _weapon_?"

"Just hold on a minute," she said, "I told Sister to send your locker here." A second or two later Weiss spied her own weapon locker descending towards them, landing with a small crash a moment later. She quickly opened it up and grabbed Myrtenaster, checking to make sure the Dust cylinders were filled. "What's your Semblance?" she asked.

"Glyphs. ...Why?"

"Cast a Speed glyph on me; I'm not as strong with defense as Yang or as quick as Ruby, and I haven't been able to use that ability on myself yet."

Rubin looked like she wanted to make a crack about Weiss's mastery of her Semblance, but thought better of it and simply cast the glyph.

 _Don't beat her right away_ , the petulant doppelgänger thought as Weiss leapt into battle, _The Faunus may be off limits here, so I need_ something _to vent on._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"Nice of you to finally join us, Ice Queen!" Yang said as Weiss appeared next to her, the heiress sending a trail of ice towards the woman.

"Save it," she said, "focus on the fight." She then cast her own Speed glyph on Yang, who nodded and rushed the woman, winding up a punch.

It never connected, though; the woman punched the ground in front of the ice, stopping it before it could reach her. As Yang closed in, the woman snapped her leg out, kicking the blond right in the stomach. Almost immediately, Cress jumped at her from the opposite direction. She morphed her arm into a scythe blade, but the woman backhanded the living weapon, without turning around, into the upturned stand RJ was hiding behind.

"Ah!" the teenager shrieked as Cress crashed into the stand.

Ruby planted the tip of Crescent Rose in the ground, sliding the lever action back and chambering a round. "Hey!" she shouted, "Leave me's alone!"

"Are you OK?" she asked once her heart stopped beating a tattoo on her chest.

"Yeah," Cress groaned, "I've had worse…." She rubbed the arm she'd transformed as she stood back up. "Once, when me and Ember were camping up north, we fought this- ack!" she cried as RJ pulled her back down.

"If you want _stay_ OK, don't rush in there again!" She peeked over the side of the stand just in time to see the woman block a fire enhanced slash from Weiss. "Man, she's _really_ strong…."

Her point was proven when the woman slashed at Yang, knocking her into another stand, demolishing it.

They were startled by a crash behind them, but upon turning around to investigate they discovered it was only what looked like a locker.

"Finally!" Rubin cheered. She ran over, throwing open the door and retrieving her weapon from within, stroking it lovingly. "Did you miss me, _Darling_?" she cooed, "None of those _peasant_ weapons defiled you by touching you, did they?"

"Is now _really_ the time to be going all 'dere-dere' over your sword?" RJ asked.

Rubin huffed, "Tch, you wouldn't understand, _peasant_!" She spun Eidlerote's barrel to its cyan Dust chamber and began making her way towards the fight. "Now if you'll _excuse_ me, I'm going to knock that ratty hood off of that disruptive woman's _head_ ; I like to _see_ the faces of who I kill…!" She then cast a Speed Glyph on herself and rushed at the woman, who was effortlessly driving Ruby back in a battle of the scythes.

RJ watched this with a combination of rapt fascination and fear. While it wasn't really her thing (she preferred team sports to the likes of wrestling or MMA fighting) every now and then she'd watch a boxing match with Barb or a Kung Fu flick with Lie Ren and Samantha, so watching a bunch of people wasn't all that disconcerting; what caused her to worry was that, from what she could tell, both the woman and her new friends were each genuinely trying to kill the other. She noticed the sharp and serrated edges on the scythes, the lethal points on Weiss and Rubin's rapiers, and-

 _Holy crap, is Yang_ punching fire _at her?!_ she marveled as the blond fired concussive blasts from Ember Celica at the hooded woman. ... _how are none of them dying yet?_

She wracked her mind for a solution that _wouldn't_ end in bloodshed.

 _If only there was a way to do damage to that chick without killing her...hang on!_

"Cress," she asked, "you can turn into a fun, right?"

Cress looked sheepish, bopping her pointer fingers together. "Well, _sort of_ …; I can't really do a full transformation yet-"

"Can you fire non-lethal shots?" the teen interrupted.

"Pfft, _doi!_ " the living weapon answered, "How do think we train without hurting each other?" She cocked her head to the side, "Why?"

"I think I have a way to take that woman out without killing her," she said. She added on her mind _At least, if my Light gun skills haven't gotten too rusty…._ "But I'm gonna need Weiss and Rubin's help for it to work, so help me get their attention."

Cress snapped a crisp salute and said "Aye aye, Cap-" a second before Rubin skidded to a stop at their feet, lying on her back. "Oh hey Rubin, we were just talking about you!" She pointed at RJ before the debutant could respond, "She has a plan!"

" _Riveting._ " She picked herself up, wiping away some hair that had come loose from her bun. "You found where her weak point is?"

 _...And attack it for massive damage_ , RJ could help thinking. "I need you to pass something onto Weiss," she said. "I'm gonna need you and her to…"

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Yang would have made a pun about Rubin falling for this lady, but she was too busy dodging her attacks to spare the brainpower.

"Why! Won't! You! Stay! Still! And! Let! Me! Hit! You!?" she asked with each dodge. She was all for having a good fight, but that normally getting in some hits as well, and as it stood, she had yet to land a single blow against this woman. _This is like that fight from the Tournament all over again-WHOA!_

She almost got a facelift (in that her face would have been lifted right off her skull) by a particularly intense swing of the woman's scythe in her brief distraction, pulling her head back at the last second.

"Whoa, watch the face!" she shouted, stumbling back, "My fans aren't gonna be happy if...you…."

A single strand of blond hair hovered in front of her (still intact) face, slowly floating to the ground.

She was once again knocked into a stand while she was in shock.

"Oh, it is _on_ now!" she yelled, activating her Semblance and charging the woman, her first raised high, " _Nobody touches my perf hair!_ "

The woman made no move to evade or dodge the punch. Instead, she simply stood her ground and caught the punch that Yang threw, which caused a shockwave as the force met resistance.

"What the-?" was all she managed to say before the hooded woman somehow twisted her around and brought her elbow down on Yang's, breaking the blond's arm.

Yang crumpled to the ground, her Semblance dying, clutching her now limp arm close and throwing out whatever swears and curse words she could think of.

The woman then transformed her scythe into a sniper rifle and pointed it at Yang's head.

" _Now!"_ came from behind her, and she turned to find the source of the exclamation, only to find that her feet were held to the ground by Weiss and Rubin's glyphs, with RJ in between the two girls aiming Cress's gun right at her.

Cress fired.

The woman tries to bring her weapon up to block the shot, but she wasn't quite fast enough; the shot pinged off the gun's chassis and flew right under her hood, causing it to fall back.

"Shoot!" RJ cursed, "I missed!"

"But it looked like you got her head," Ruby pointed out, "isn't that a good thing?"

RJ shook her head. "I was trying to hit her in the chest," she explained, "to like, you know, stagger her or something, then you guys could go over and tie her up."

" _Piece of!..."_ Yang cried from where she lay, wincing.

"Uh, hold that thought!" Ruby told RJ before running over to her sister. "I'm coming, Yang!"

"...it looks like the woman is still alive," Rubin noted, pointedly ignore the girl who'd styled herself Rubin's warden. "Shame, you would've got her in the heart if she didn't block it."

"I wasn't trying to _kill_ her!" RJ protested, "It was supposed to just knock her out!"

"Yeah!" Cress nodded, "I _totally_ didn't make my shot strong enough to kill!"

"Forget about that for now," Weiss ordered, "Let's make sure that woman stays put until the authorities arrive." She headed for the now prone woman, then stopped and turned to RJ, "That was a good plan, by the way. Good job."

"Uh...thanks. It was nothing."

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

While the four of them checked on the woman, Ruby fused about Yang, who was cursing under her breath.

"Same... _fricken_ arm!" she hissed as Ruby tried to splint her left arm, "Weiss is never gonna let me live this down…."

" _Yang!"_ Blake called, running up to the sisters, Sister and Rosey following close behind. "...What happened?" she asked.

"Some lady was going on a rampage beating up a bunch of robots, we fought her, she beat Yang up, and RJ figured out how to win," Ruby summarized.

"Were there any other casualties?" Sister asked, glancing at the robot parts that littered the ground, "Other than Yang, of course."

Ruby shook her head, tying off the splint, "No, just the robots."

"I-is that imp-portant?" Rosey wondered.

"Well, sort of…," Blake tried to explain, "if she was a terrorist, she would have attacked the people, and since we don't depend on robots very much in our daily lives it doesn't make sense for someone to just target them to instill terror."

"I'm fine, by the way," Yang spoke up, grunting in pain, "thanks for asking; not like I just got my _arm broke!_ or anything- OW!"

"Sorry!" Ruby chirped, "Don't move around so much!"

"It seems like such a vast amount of destruction for a single woman," mused Sister, still marvelling at the destruction that surrounded them, "even taking into account the prowess of people like Uncle Qrow or Professor Goodwitch."

"Well, _I_ believe it!" Yang said, "I put everything I could into that last punch, normal people usually aren't able to catch something like that without at least a _little_ bit of give."

"Then perhaps we should ask the lady herself how she was able to accomplish that feat," the graceful young woman suggested, gesturing over to where the rest of their group was gathered.

Yang glanced where the older version of her sister was pointed, expecting to see the woman she fought being bound (possibly gagged with an apple for comedic effect) by, and instead was rewarded with Weiss offering the woman a hand up.

"Oh, I'm gonna ask her some questions alright." She got up and headed over to the woman, "...with _Ember Celica_!"

"Oh no, nononononononono!" Ruby wailed, trying to hold her sister back and getting dragged along behind her instead. "You're just gonna make your arm worse!"

Blake, Sister, and Rosey all followed after them, partly out of curiosity and partly to help hold Yang back if need be.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"Most impressive," Cinder praised, nodded in satisfaction. The girl she'd found in the crate was turning out to be full of surprises beyond what the the criminal Huntress was expecting; aside from her trick with her automatic translation, she'd demonstrated powers and abilities different than what was normally possible for Huntsmen and Huntresses, including some that defied all know logic and reason. Cinder would have said the powers this girl held sway over almost rivaled that of the Maidens, but the many times the girl flubbed one of her "spells", as well as the results of the successful ones told her otherwise.

Still, even a botched attempt at something could yield good results if applied on the proper circumstances….

" _Ksa!_ " the girl swore, as another of her spells fizzled out the instant the magical energy she summoned left her wand, "I can _never_ cast Alteration spells properly!" She slumped to the floor, "I know the theory, so why can I not perform them, even with a wand?"

"I'm sure you'll figure it out," Cinder assured her, "From what I've seen so far, you're already quite skilled, so if you keep working at it, there's no doubt you'll overcome this hurdle." She let out a long suffering sigh, "Sometimes it takes longer than you originally plan…."

The girl turned and shot Cinder a "don't give me that" look, "Please do not demean yourself just to make me feel better, Master; _everyone_ knows you are one of the most powerful Sorceresses in the entire Kingdom, do not pretend like you are still a Novice!"

"You're right," she agreed, playing along, "I don't know what I was thinking." As she made a show of regaining her composure, her eyes focused on the amulet the girl wore around her neck; it looked like it was made of gold, with a red crystal that was shaped like a rose in blood embedded in it that seemed to have a faint glow that came from within the crystal itself. She pointed, "And that?"

The girl's hand reflexively went for the ornament, rubbing it gently with her thumb. "You mean Crescent Rose? She used to belong to my mother, but I inherited her after you agreed to take me on as your Apprentice," she explained, "she is the only of my powers that I have never found difficult to summon." Then a quizzical expression washed over her face, "But you were there when she was presented to me, so why did you ask?"

"Because I want you to demonstrate her to me now," Cinder told the girl, "After all, whatever caused you to end up in that box may have had some affect on your abilities, and I want to make sure my apprentice hasn't suffered any ill-"

"Of course!" the girl exclaimed, interrupting Cinder, "I should never have doubted you, Master!" She perked up and, casting her hand at a space on the floor, spoke " _Mhag, sala Ruvys et trahtkothellan keh sinnen, Crescsata Rosa!_ "

At those words the crystal began to glow fiercely and an intricate, ethereal design rose from the spot the girl's hand was facing. It rose until it was about as tall as the girl herself, thorny vines growing into the space. They tangled around each other in a very deliberate manner until the shape resembled something humanoid, if slightly feminine. On its "head", roses started to bloom in a way that resembled hair. The vines that made up its arms separated to form fingers, and the bases of its legs widened slightly to provide stability where it stood.

When this was done, the ethereal designs faded into nothing. The plant figure swiveled its head as if it were looking around, eventually settling on the girl, shuffling over next to her. It took a moment to ruffle the girl's crimson tinted hair.

If Cinder hadn't seen it happen with her own eyes, she wouldn't have believed such a thing were possible.

"Magnificent…!" she breathed, trying to hold her amazement in check.

"Thank you, Master," the girl said, doing a curtsy. The vine creature followed suit, roses blooming on its cheeks in what Cinder assumed was its version of blushing. The girl then asked the creature "Do you feel any different, Rose?"

The creature shook its head.

"Wonderful!" the girl cheered, turning to Cinder, "Whatever phenomenon spirited me into that box, it has not caused me or my magics any ill effect!"

"Excellent-" she said, just as Emerald returned with Adam Taurus, "Ah, perfect timing."

"What is that girl doing here?" he asked brusquely, his hand going to the hilt of his weapon. Though his eyes were covered by his Grimm mask, his general body language suggested that he would cut the girl down at the first provocation.

Cinder stepped between the girl and the Faunus radical, stating, "She isn't to be harmed, _Adam_ ; if you'll let me, I'll explain everything. That's why I wanted to talk with you in the first place."

Her voice made it clear that she wasn't asking, and the sound of Emerald drawing her revolvers lead credence to that.

"...fine," he said, the tension in his body noticeably evaporating. (Though he still kept a hand on his sword.) "Explain."

"That's better." She turned and bent down so she was eye to eye with the girl. "Why don't you go rest for a bit while I talk to my... _associate_ here?" she suggested, placing a hand on the girl's shoulder, "I shouldn't take too long." She pointed to a door on the far side of the large room, "My room is over there."

"Thank you, Master," she said, her and the creature bowing, "I will await you patiently."

"Good girl."

The girl bowed again and started walking in the indicated direction. "Come on, Rose!"

When the girl was finally out of earshot, Cinder turned to Adam. "Now, as I'm sure Emerald has already informed you…."

 _to be continued..._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Like Dark Helmet from Spaceballs, FOOLED YOU! Oh man, I can't believe you guys fell for oldest trick in the book! That's just previous y'all actually fell for my little red herring like that! It is_ literally _all I can do to keep from falling to the floor in the throes of laughter!_

 _All joshing aside, meet Crimson Thorne! (Ruby Tally: 7/8. Only one more to go!) She's the only one of the OCs in this fic who existed before I started writing it. (I mentioned her at the end of chapter 1.) I'll talk more about her next time when I do her profile._

 _And now, the profile you've all been waiting for! The one, the only, the friend to Faunus everywhere...Rubin Schnee!_

 **Ruby OC name: Rubin Schnee**

 **Backstory: Rubin was born to Summer Rose and the head of the Schnee Dust company in an extramarital affair, the second child to come of it. (The first being Shiro Rose a couple years prior.) She lived with Summer and Taiyang Xiao-Long until she turned two years old, at which point Herr Schnee came back and claimed her as his own. She grew up in the Schnee Manor, and was trained with the same level of expectation as though she were his actual daughter, constantly spurred on by the whispers that she was "unworthy" or "a disgrace" or "not really a Schnee"; the only member of the Schnees who didn't whisper behind her back was Winter, the only child of Herr Schnee's previous marriage, the two becoming allies of convenience (due to Winter's desire to join the Atlas military instead of taking over the company) and eventually friends.**

 **However, on her twelfth birthday, she and Winter were kidnapped by the White Fang and held for ransom, only being rescued after four days. During that time, Winter was constantly brutalized by their captors while Rubin was made to watch. After their rescue, she poured herself into her training with renewed fervor and would often take it upon herself to personally deal with the Faunus who worked in the Dust mines, finding excuses to punish them as severely as possible.**

 **After turning fifteen she realized that no matter what she did, she would never earn Herr Schnee's affection or praise outside of the minimum token effort. She volunteered to test out the new Multi-Action Dust Rapier Schnee Labs was developing, easily showing superb skill with the weapon. She claimed one of the prototypes for herself, naming it "Eidlerote". She then informed Herr Schnee personally that she would be attending Beacon Academy instead of Atlas Academy and headed to Vale as soon as possible.**

 **While at Beacon, she reconnected with Shiro and her half sister Yang, though they never got along with each other. After** **Initiation she was assigned Shiro as her partner, as well as Yang and a Faunus named Blake as teammates, whom she barely tolerates.**

 **Quirks: haughty, self centered, arrogant, highly prejudiced, entitled, hides her pain.**

 _I told you guys I had a crap ton of backstory for Rubin! In fact, she probably has the most backstory aside from Crimson. And yes, she will be getting some significant character growth before this story is finished, that you can count on._

 _Now since a couple people have asked this now, so I might as well clear this up: Ruby Jones/RJ_ _ **is not**_ _supposed to be Lindsey Jones, Ruby's voice actress. She's a completely original character (to my knowledge) and isn't supposed to be based off any real world person or people; the same goes for her friends and family, though to a slightly lesser degree._

 _And because I know some of you are getting ideas,_ _ **there won't be any shipping in this fic**_ **,** _so whoever is hoping for a lemon scene with Cinder and "the girl", forget it._

 _Anywho, Yang seems a bit miffed after getting her arm broke, didn't she? I wonder how her little conversation will go…._


	10. She seems familiar

_S'up, y'all! BOY, was that last chapter long or what! Seriously, the Cinder bit at the end just came out of nowhere!_

 _But enough about me, Yang was going a few (violent) words with the newly introduced Crimson, right?_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

" _Yang!_ " Ruby pleaded, "Punching doesn't always solve problems!"

"But it does make me feel better," the blond countered, "especially when I'm punching the bitch who broke my arm!" She marched forward, determined, unheeded by her little sister hanging from her good arm.

"This will not end well for you," Sister cautioned, "You should take your sister's advice and let your arm heal."

Rosey poked her head out from behind Blake, nodding "Mm-hmm!"

Blake hurried to keep pace with Yang. "Yang, your arm is broken, do you want to lose it completely?"

Yang stopped, causing Ruby to stumble.

"...look," she said, "I got rinsed by that pipsqueak on the train, and I nearly got arrested because of that silver haired pissant and that... _Emerald_." She paused, kicking a Knight's head by her feet. "And even though I won the Tournament, it was pretty much because the other guy wore himself out and I had the same arm in a sling. So I'm gonna slug that woman in the face, and then I'm gonna actually feel like myself again-" She turned to glare at the girls (Rosey whimpered, further shrinking behind Blake), "-and if you guys wanna try and stop me, I'll be happy to give you a turn first."

And with that, she shook Ruby off and continued marching towards the woman, her eyes red with anger.

"Come on," Blake said, following after her partner. She lead Rosey along by her hand, "we should still be there just in case."

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"...so then he told me, 'No, the _other_ other one'," the woman said, regaling the the girls with her story. Now that her hood was off, they could see that she looked around ten to fifteen years older than all the other Ruby doppelgängers. She had a large eyepatch over her left eye, and over her right she had a scar that looked almost exactly like Weiss's, "like he _wasn't_ just just going on about 'quantum harmonizers' and 'reverse polarity neutron flows' and 'multi-modal reflection sorting', and other sciencey things."

"OK," RJ said, "I play a lot of videogames, and I don't know what any of those things are."

Cress just had a bunch of question marks floating above her head. Weiss was keeping a wary eye on the woman while she listened, and Rubin was petting Eidlerote.

"I know, right!?" she continued, "I fight Grimm and killer robots on a _hourly_ basis, I can't be expected to know-" She stopped abruptly when she felt someone tap her on the shoulder. She turned around and saw Yang there, looking ready to bite her head off. "Oh, it's you. Listen, Weiss explained-"

POW! Yang didn't even wait for her to finish, slugging the woman across the face with her good arm as hard as she could, knocking the woman onto the ground.

"Whoa, what the hell!" RJ exclaimed, and Cress's eyes grew wide.

Yang ignored the heiress, instead closing her eyes and letting out a deep breath; when she opened her eyes again they'd reverted back to their normal lilac color. "Oh, yeah, that felt good…!" she sighed.

"What the hell, Xiao-Long?" Weiss shouted, "She was trying to apologize!" By this point Ruby, Blake, Sister, and Rosey had caught up to the rest.

"Never mind, Weiss," the woman said from the ground, waving dismissively, "I kinda deserved it for breaking her arm." She picked herself up and held her hand out, "Nice to meet you, call me Crimson."

"Nice to meet you!" said Ruby, playing the diplomat and shaking Crimson's hand, "So you're another older me, huh?"

"It looks like," she said, glancing to each different version of the girl in front of her. "Like I was _trying_ to say before-" she looked pointedly at Yang "-Weiss summed up the whole thing for me. And sorry for attacking you guys before, between my trip here and all the killbots I was pretty much seeing red until Miss Weapon shot at me." She jerked a thumb at Cress. "Sorta snapped me out of my daze, I guess."

Sister held up her hand, "If you don't mind me asking, why _were_ you attacking the Knights in the first place?"

Crimson shrugged. "The simple answer?" she said, "Because I thought they were going to kill me if I didn't kill them first." She reached into a pouch on her belt and pulled out a flask that she uncapped and poured into her mouth. "Ah, that hit the spot! Anyway, the more complex reason is long and depressing and boring, so I don't really want to talk about." She took another gulp from her flask. "But enough about me," she said, pointing at a bunch of Atlas soldiers that were running towards them, their weapons drawn, "what are we gonna do about them?"

While everyone blanched, fretting over how they were going to explain that the woman who single handedly took out most of their robots was actually the same person as the six other, similar looking girls to the military, Weiss took charge and started walking towards the soldiers. "I'll stall them while the rest of you get somewhere else," she said. "Sister, I could use your help; you're much more eloquent than me."

"Of course," the graceful young woman said, following behind Weiss.

"Meet us in the Colosseum when you're done," Blake called behind her, she and Rosey pushing a stubborn Yang along.

"Sure!"

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"OK…," Ruby panted as they reached the locker room of the Amity Colosseum, "I think...we're good now…!" She doubled over, breathing heavily. "Hah...how are you not tired?" she asked Crimson, who looked like she hadn't even broken a sweat.

She shrugged, "Pure awesomeness? Years of conditioning? Living every day of your life in an apocalyptic hellhole while trying not to get killed by soulless machines of death? Take your pick."

"Yeah," RJ nodded, panting next to Ruby, "that would about do it."

"Please, you're _exaggerating_ ," accused Rubin, "There's _no way_ things get as bad in the future as you're suggesting-"

Crimson was suddenly in front of the petulant debutante, glaring down at her with her one good eye. Rubin immediately shut her mouth, actually shrinking under the older woman's glare despite herself.

"How...h-how did…?"

"I've seen stuff that would freeze your blood cold, _Princess_ ," she said in a low, dangerous voice, leaning in close to Rubin's face, "When I was your age, I watched Vale fall to the things that were supposed to be our protectors. On top of that, I had to watch one of my best friends get murdered right in front of me. She got shot through the heart. _Right. Here._ " She punctuated the last two words by poking Rubin roughly in the chest. "So tell me I'm exaggerating what I went through, _I dare you!_ "

Leaving Rubin more than a little shell shocked, Crimson took out her flask again and downed whatever was left inside.

"Great," she moaned, shaking the now empty bottle upside down, "now I'm gonna need to get more booze."

"Sh-she's sc-sc-scary…!" Rosey said from behind Blake.

"Uh huh!" Cress nodded vigorously, having joined the young Faunus in her little Sanctum Sanctorum.

"Any of you know where I can find some good booze?" Crimson asked the group. Weiss and Sister were just returning by this point and heard the question, to which Weiss immediately crossed her arms in an "X" shape.

"Oh no, no no _no_! I absolutely _forbid_ us from going anywhere another alcoholic beverage ever again!" she yelled, stamping her foot in emphasis. "As far as we know, that's what caused all of these Ruby's to start showing up in the first place!"

"Did it?" Blake asked, "I mean, we can't remember a thing that happened between sitting down at that bar and waking up in our room; we could have simply passed out then and there, and Qrow carried us back to Beacon."

Ruby shook her head, "I don't think so. He's strong, but he can't carry four people, not like our Dad can."

"Whatever!" Weiss folded her arms over her chest and tapped her foot impatiently. "Still, it bugs me that none of us can remember what happened right before all this started." She turned towards the rest of the girls, getting an idea, "How did each of you end up here? Maybe there's some connection there that we're missing."

"So…," Crimson swung her flask tantalizingly, "...is that a no to getting more booze-?"

" _OF COURSE IT IS!_ " everyone shouted.

"Geez…," Crimson sighed, unaffected by the miniature gale, "I was just asking…."

"I simply walked through a door and ended up in the mall," Sister explained, "and before that I was helping Yang make adjustments to Ember Celica."

"I was in the shower," RJ said. "For the record, it's kinda _weird_ how your bathroom and mine look exactly the same!"

Rosey shuffled in place, "I w-was asleep…i-in an alley..."

"Hah!" Rubin chuckled. _Of course she was!_

"Oh yeah?" Yang said, finally speaking up for the first time since she punched Crimson, "And what were _you_ doing, Princess, _painting your toenails_?"

Rubin glowered at Yang. "For you _information, brute_ , I was in the middle training with my _team_ when I was sucked into one of my own glyphs," she explained snidely, "I thought it might have been _Rose_ messing with me, but after ending up here I realized that she wasn't smart or cunning enough to pull that off."

"So I guess that means it's my turn to share," Crimson deduced. "Well, I was trying to time travel back to the past by way of this 'teleporter' thingamajig to stop the robots from taking over the future; I was aiming to arrive _before_ the Vytal tournament, but _that_ apparently didn't happen."

"That's _insane, you're_ insane!" Rubin accused, "If time travel were _possible_ , wouldn't we see more people from the _future_ show up in the present?"

"Never claimed I was sane, honey cheeks!" she said, giving Rubin a condescending pat on the cheek.

"Grrr!" Rubin growled.

"Sh-she's s-so cool…!" Rosey marveled. (Blake raised an eyebrow at the younger Faunus's heel turn.)

Weiss, meanwhile, was not having much success drawing a connection between each Ruby's summon. "They're all so different," she muttered, pacing back and forth, "I thought there would have been at least _some_ common factor between all these accounts…."

"You know what helps the thinkin' brain?" Crimson posed, once again drawing attention to her empty flask, "A nice, stout drink of-"

"NO ALCOHOL!" she snapped before returning to her musings. "There _has_ to be something! If we don't figure this out, we could have more Ruby's than we could handle or, God forbid, we could get a plague of _Yangs_ ; one's bad enough!"

"I still have one good arm, you know," Yang reminded the heiress threateningly.

"Perhaps we should return to Beacon," suggested Sister, "Weiss and I were only able to deter them temporarily, and with the commotion Miss Crimson caused in her confusion before there will most likely be more soldiers than usual looking for her." She turned to Crimson, "How important is it that you change the future you came from?"

Crimson leaned back against a row of lockers, her brow furrowing thoughtfully. "...You know," she said, "I not sure; I landed a few days, maybe a week, off from when I was supposed to get here, and everything's still hunky-doory, so I don't know if I can actually make a difference anymore or what. Though to be honest..." She crossed her arms behind her head, "it'd be nice to old Beacon Academy in its prime again…."

"I second the heading back thing," RJ added, "with everything that happened, I think I'm all fun'd out for the day."

"All in favor?" Ruby asked, raising her hand. Everyone else raised their hands in response. "OK then!" she announced triumphantly, "To Beacon!"

"We'll meet you guys there," Blake said, taking Rosey's hand, "we need to get some things from the library first."

 _to be continued…._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Wow, I totally didn't expect Yang's bit of character angst to happen like that! (I guess this is what people mean when they say their characters got away from them…) I'm being completely serious, too; I was always planning on having Yang sock Crimson in the kisser, but the only motivation I planned on giving her was that she was mad she lost_ _ **this particular time**_ _._

 _Also, I couldn't resist sneaking that little nod to a certain couple episodes from the later half of Volume 3 in there as well. Tee hee._

 _Well, why don't we take a look at the lady that was actually able to block Yang's Semblance charged punches, and the catalyst that helped this story come about?_

 **Ruby OC name: Crimson Throne**

 **Backstory: [Error 404: backstory not found]**

 **Quirks: [-file corrupted-], needs to be nerfed.**

 _And that's- ...huh, that's weird, I could have sworn I had that backstory around here somewhere…. Oh well, such is life. (If you want to learn about the original Crimson Thorne, go check out my fic "Sins of the Future". Yes, that "error" was intentional, by the way.)_

 _Anyway, that's going to be it for the profiles for the time being, at least until the final OC meets up with the rest of them. I've had fun thinking them up, and they've helped me polish up the OCs characters a lot._

 _So next time, how about we have a little down time for everyone? Rosey needs a chance to practice reading, after all... (And I enjoy hearing what you people think, so don't be stingy with the reviews!)_


	11. Much needed catharsis

_Welcome back, folks! So last time, Team RWBY picked up another OC, and so did Cinder & Co!_

 _But forget about the second point for the moment, let's check in on our group of now 10 lovely ladies and see what they're doing…_

 _ **Warning: contains brief, strong language.**_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"ZWEI!" Crimson squealed, shoving her way past the others and scooping up the corgi up in her arms and hugging him tightly, "Oh my God, you have no idea how happy I am to see you, you beautiful, stupid dog!" She nuzzled him to her cheek, giggling as he licked her in response.

"OK, RJ said, pointing a shaky finger at the (currently former) battle hardened woman, "I saw her beat you guys down like it was nothing, and this is like...twenty times scarier than that!"

"Hey, I haven't seen my dog in years," she protested, "let me have this!"

RJ threw her hands up in surrender, stating "Whatever..." and stepping closer to the rest of her doppelgängers.

"So what happens now?" Ruby asked. "We've got another me now, and I don't know about the rest of you guys, but the room is starting to feel _pretty_ small to me now."

"Plus, _someone_ cut our day at the Vytal Festival short," Yang added, shooting an icy look at Crimson (who made no indication that she noticed it, enamored as she was with Zwei).

"I don't know what you're talking about," she said, giving Zwei nosies.

"Can I have a turn?" Cress asked with stars in her eyes, to which Crimson simply held up a finger.

"If nothing else, she at least has the sense to treat Zwei properly," Weiss noted to herself. Then she turned to Sister. "Did you find what you were looking for?" she asked.

Sister shook her head sorrowfully. "I'm afraid not… I was unable to find any information relating to this phenomenon we've all found ourselves in."

Rubin let out a frustrated grunt.

"Do you wish to say something, Miss Schnee?"

"... _Well_ , I was _hoping_ that I wouldn't have to stay here very much _longer_ ," she said, "but since it's apparent that I'm the only _competent_ one here, that doesn't look like it's going to _happen_ anymore, does it!?"

"Don't sugarcoat it, Rubes," Yang quipped, hopping up to her bunk, "tell us how you _really_ feel."

"I _would_ ," she snapped, not picking up in the sarcasm, "but you people always take offense whenever I bring up the _animals_ you've let run around this country as if it were some kind of _zoo_ \- Hey! Let go of me!"

Crimson handed Zwei off to Cress (who squealed with glee) and grabbed Rubin by the nape of her cloak, dragging her out the door. "I'm gonna hit the gym," she informed the other girls, "and she's gonna spot me."

" _Get your filthy hands_ off _me!_ " the petulant débutante protested, "You have _no right_ to treat a _Schnee_ like this!"

" _I'll remember that the next time I meet one!"_ could be heard as the two alternate Ruby's disappeared from sight.

"...Not gonna lie," Yang said, "that was pretty cool."

"Her leaving or the fact that she took Rubin with her?" Weiss asked.

"Eh, maybe both?" she shrugged. "She still has a way to go before I stop being mad about my arm, but it's a start."

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

The two Ruby doppelgängers drew stares as they made their way down the halls of Beacon- though it was actually more like Rubin struggling to break free of Crimson's iron grip on her cloak -heading for the nearest training arena. Crimson simply ignored them, focused only on her destination, while Rubin was too intent on escaping from the clutches of her latest captor to worry about what the plebeians thought of her.

"Has anyone ever told you how feisty you are?" she asked, her grip on the débutante's cloak refusing to loosen. "I know you're supposed to be Weiss and everything, but I don't remember Ice Queen ever struggling this much for me."

"That's because I'm _not_ her, you...you…!" She tried to think of an insult for the woman dragging her, but was unable to come up with any that could be said in polite company. (She still had an image to maintain, after all.) "...I-I'm a Schnee, I _demand_ you show me the respect I deserve!"

"Oh, trust me, I've been doing nothing _but_!" She suddenly turned and burst through a set of doors, emerging into an empty arena. "Sweet! Now I don't have to kick anyone out!" She tossed Rubin to the floor (" _Ow!_ " "Oh relax, this is what you wanted.") and walk to the middle of the arena, stretching. "You might want to limber up before we start."

"I don't even want to _be_ here!" Rubin protested as she picked herself up, "What make you think I'll just do what-"

Before she'd even realized what happened she was on the floor again, this time looking up at Crimson's smug grin.

"Because _that_ ," the older woman said, walking back to the the center, "Now, do your warmups and-"

"RAH!" Rubin screamed. She'd had just about enough of the one eyed woman's utter lack of respect; forget what that even paler reflection of Rose said, she wasn't going to stand for it any longer! Rubin brandished Eidlerote (They'd thankfully forgotten to take it away from her upon returning to Beacon.) and lunged right for Crimson, using a glyph to give her an extra boost of speed.

Her target was Crimson's heart.

What she actually ended connecting with was a finger that Crimson held up, somehow halting all her momentum.

"You're too emotional," the woman critiqued, "granted, I'm not exactly the posted child of emotional composure myself, but that doesn't-"

"Hah!" She pulled her sword away and cast a glyph under Crimson's feet, holding her in place, and cast a speed glyph on herself as she renewed her assault, slashing wildly.

In the blink of an eye Crimson pulled out her knife and parried her younger doppelgänger's attacks, not moving an inch.

"You _will_ show me respect," she cried, "even if I have to _make_ you!"

"Not how that works, Twinkletoes," Crimson said, effortlessly keeping Rubin at bay, "You can 'demand' respect all you want, but no one's gonna give it to you unless they want to; it didn't work for the White Fang, and it's not going to work for you."

Then something inside Rubin snapped. " _Don't you_ dare _compare_ _me to those_ animals _!_ " she screamed, breaking off her assault and leaping back, sending a wave of ice towards Crimson. The battle hardened woman easily punched the ice apart before it swallowed her, and quickly parried another lunge as Rubin attacked her from the opposite direction. Rubin didn't stop at that, instead rapidly jumping between various "air step" glyphs and occasionally coming at Crimson from the woman's blind spot on her left.

 _Touched a nerve there, methinks,_ she thought as Rubin to rain blows on her.

"I am _nothing_ like those _pests_ who think that they're even _remotely_ worthy of the dirt they sleep in, much less being treated as _equals_!" she ranted. "They're filthy, uncultured, _self serving, degenerate monsters!_ " she yelled, punctuating each word with an attack, "All they do is leech off of _humanity_ , expecting them to somehow believe they won't stab us in the back the first chance they get!

"If I could have my way, I would _personally_ hunt down and _eradicate_ every last one of those _sadistic, savage, uncaring…!_ " She once again broke off her attack and made ready to lunge at Crimson, blinking back tears. "You may not be a damn, stinking _furry_ ," she said, her voice threatening to break, "but you're closer to them than _me_ , and that will have to do." She pointed Eidlerote at Crimson's neck, "I'll be sure to make it slow-"

 _Thwack_! She felt something hit her right in the middle of her forehead, causing her to stagger back in shock. A moment later she heard the sound of something metal clatter to the floor, immediately followed by three quick gunshots hitting her chest, pushing her further back.

Suddenly Crimson was right next to her, her face completely devoid of all the mischievous coyness she'd displayed since they met her. " _If you want to make me suffer_ ," the dangerous woman said, " _get in line and try harder_." She then tripped Rubin up, knocking her to the floor a third time and pinning her there with even more knives. (Where she'd been hiding them, Rubin could only guess.)

"You could probably get out of those easily enough," Crimson told her, "but if you don't want this to keep happening, you shut up and listen to what I have to say. You indulge me, and I'll let you up, no questions asked. OK? Nod if you understand."

Rubin nodded, still in a bit of a daze from her head injury.

"Good." Crimson plopped herself down next to the incapacitated doppelgänger, sitting cross legged and reclining back. "Now, I'm not the sanest of individuals, I'll cop to that right now, and I've seen shit that no one person, human or Faunus, should _ever_ have to see-" she gestured to herself "-which is why I'm the well adjusted woman you see before you today. But you?" She looked at Rubin pityingly, "You're a _special_ kind of fucked up I haven't had the pleasure of reaching yet." She then leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees and cupping her face with her hands, "So why don't you tell Auntie Crimson exactly what the Faunus did to you that made you hate them so much?"

It took Rubin a moment to register what Crimson said, but then it clicked, and a wave of memories she'd struggled for years to keep repressed began flooding back at once.

"It...wasn't _me_ they hurt," she mumbled, "...it was my sister."

"Ah, that actually makes more sense."

"I-it happened when I was twelve," she continued, "on my birthday. Winter took me on a trip to Vale to go look for a present. She d-didn't tell Herr Schnee where we were going, so we didn't have any guards with us. We were on our w-way to Gavino's for lunch when these fur- ... _Faunus_...came up behind us and drugged us; the next thing I know I'm ties up in the corner of some dingy warehouse."

She paused, looking conflicted about recounting the event further as she, unsuccessfully, fought back the tears. For her part Crimson remained silent, waiting for Rubin to continue of her own accord.

Eventually Rubin sniffled and continued. "W-we were there for _four days_ before anyone came for us...and those were the _worst_ four days of my _life_!" Crimson leaned over and started pulling her knives out of Rubin's clothes. "They…." She gulped. "Those _beasts_ made me watch as they beat Winter senseless the entire time!" She slammed her fist on the ground, "They _tortured_ her, and they made me watch the whole time!" By now her sobs were starting to break through the last of her composure. She tried to rub away her tears, but the floodgates had been opened and it was a losing battle.

"Yeah," Crimson sighed, tucking her knives away again, "that'll about do it."

"Like you _actually_ care!" Rubin accused, trying to sound condescending and failing. "Nobody has _ever_ cared about me: not the man who made me, not my peers...even the _animals_ that kidnapped me left me out of any threats they made to Herr Schnee when they ransomed Winter back to him!" She sat up and drew her knees to her chest, "So why should you?"

"Well, the clichéd reason is that I sort of _am_ you," Crimson said, "but the _actual_ reason is that I'm probably the only other person here who knows what it's like to have nothing but shit piled on you for years. ...except for maybe little Rosey."

Rubin huffed. "Great, I can get pity from the _Faunus_ …."

"Hey, I'm just telling it like it is," the one eyed woman shrugged, "not how you want to hear it." She stood up, offering a hand to Rubin. "So you wanna go another round, or are you fine with letting the past control you?"

Rubin glared up at Crimson, fully intending to refute her claims that she was letting the past control her. She wasn't sure what she was expecting to see when she looked up, probably more flippancy if she were to hazard a guess, but it certainly wasn't the look of someone who genuinely wanted to get to know her, no agendas attached.

She only remembered seeing that look on one other person in her entire life, and that person had almost gotten turned into a vegetable.

"I'll give you a free hit," she offered, wiggling her fingers tantalizingly, "one sorry excuse to another?"

This caught Rubin's interest.

"I don't _need_ any handicap," she said as she got other feet, "but it's clear that _you're_ the better fighter between the two of us." She went to retrieve Eidlerote from where it fell, "So how about you show me why I never seem to be able to win against anyone here instead?" She faced Crimson and held the rapier at the ready.

The battle hardened woman chuckled and took out her knife again. "OK, if that's what you want. Don't expect me to go easy on you, though."

Rubin gave a cocky smirk and selected her cyan Dust. "I wouldn't have it any other way."

 _to be continued..._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _See? I told you Rubin would be getting some character development before the end! (And if the email notifications I've been getting are any indication, you people really want to know more about Crimson! Well, you'll have to read Sina of the Future to do that, since she isn't the main focus of this little ensemble story here.)_

 _So since we won't see the final Profile until the last remaining OC officially joins the team, I figured I'd show you guys the glossary I've come up with so far for said OC's native language._

 _ **Mhastina**_ _= Master/Teacher (Female form)_

 _ **sala**_ _possessive prefix for addressing self_

 _ **ah**_ _= oh_

 _ **Irsa!**_ _= Wait!/Wait a minute!_

 _ **Ksa!**_ _= Damn!/Dammit!_

 _ **Mhag**_ _= magic, used for spells and incantations_

 _ **keh sinnen**_ _= roughly "I summon", used for spells and incantations, particularly summoning_

 _And there you have it! Secretly, half of the words I made up for that language are only meant to sound otherworldly, so you can at least get the gist of what's being said. Hopefully…_

 _Anywho, next time we'll check back in with everyone in the room. (Maybe Blake and Rosey will have gotten back from the library by then…?)_


	12. A new perspective

_What's crackin', guys? Welcome back! Once again, last chapter came completely out of left field, but hopefully little old Rubin is starting to come down off her high horse now. Only time will tell._

 _But what about everyone else still in the room? Well, let's see, shall we?_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"No!"

"Aw, come on, Weiss!"

"You always cheat whenever we do!"

"I do not!"

"They how else do you explain why you always win?"

"Um, maybe you just suck at games?" Yang then went to the bookcase and took out a book as thick as her fist and dropped it in front of Weiss, looking smug, "There, read it and weep! I think you'll find that I haven't broken a single R:TG rule."

" _Holy cow_ that's a big rulebook!" RJ marveled, her eyes bugging out, "How many rules are in that thing, anyway?"

"Somewhere over 9000," Yang shrugged, "It took me about two weeks to read through the whole thing."

"Whoa…!"

"...Are there any pictures?" Cress asked.

"Don't get your hopes up," Ruby warned the living weapon, "they're pretty boring."

Yang nodded, "She's right, the pictures aren't really that much to look at, just a bunch of basic shapes, really."

Just then the door owned and Blake and Rosey came through. "What's just a bunch of shapes?" Blake asked.

"The rules for Remnant: The Game," she said, jerking her thumb at Weiss, who now had the tome in her lap, studying it intensely. Yang then noticed the stack of books the younger Faunus was carrying. "You guys get a good haul?"

"Mmhmm!" Rosey nodded energetically as she deposited the books at the foot of Ruby and Weiss's bunk bed, "I can only read a f-few words r-right now, b-but Blake I'm a f-f-fast learner, and I can f-follow along with the p-pictures easy enough!"

"Where's Rubin and Crimson?" Blake wondered, depositing her own, shorter stack on the bookcase, "Did they go somewhere?"

"I think Crimson said something about them going to train," Ruby said, "and Sister followed after them when she remembered they forgot to put their weapons away." The her expression morphed into one of concern, "I hope Crimson isn't being too hard on her…"

"Not me!" Yang hopped up to her bunk. "The little brat could use a good kick in the pants, if you ask me."

"She wasn't very nice," Cress pointed out.

"True dat!" RJ agreed. "Hey, so how exactly does that game work?"

Yang perked up at this, chuckling as an evil grin crept its way onto her face. "I'd be _happy_ to show you…!"

"Count me out!" announced Weiss, "If I ever get dragged into that confusing, convoluted game again it'll be too soon!"

"Ooh, sounds to me like _someone's_ just a sore loser!" RJ teased, shooting a look of mock disappointment at the heiress. She shrugged, " _But_ , if you don't think you're not capable of taking on a fifteen year old girl…" She let the thought hang, raising an eyebrow.

Weiss shot the teenager an icy glare. "Oh, it is _on_!"

"Attagirl, Weiss!" Ruby praised. "I'll play too; we can do teams!"

"If that's the case," Weiss said, "then I want to be on _Yang's_ team."

Ruby sputtered for a moment, shock that her partner would abandon her so callously.

"H-how c-c-could you…?" She wondered, shaken.

Weiss shrugged. "Yang's clearly the better at that game, and I want to win."

"OK, if that's what you want," the crimsonette sniffed, before fixing Weiss with the hardest glare she could muster. "But just so you know, I _won't_ forget this act of betrayal!" She stomped over to RJ and grabbed her hand. "Come on RJ," she said, "let's show my sister and my _ex-_ partner how Remnant: The Game is _really_ played!"

"Totally!" RJ cheered, "Even though I have no idea how it even works yet!"

"Kick their butts!" Cress joined in.

"*bark!*", Zwei barked, sitting in Cress's lap.

"Don't get too cocky, Little Sis!" Yang boasted, "...And RJ; it'll be a cold day in Hell before I let myself lose at R:TG!" She hopped back down, "Prepare to eat Cards!"

"I immediately regret my decision," Weiss sighed, hanging her head.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Where could they have gone?_ Sister wondered as she searched for Rubin and Crimson. She'd asked the other students she passed if they'd seen a woman with an eyepatch dragging a girl in a white cloak, and had been directed towards the arenas. _If Miss Crimson took Miss Rubin here, then she must have a reason other than simply having her on hand while she exercises._

She didn't want to believe that the battle worn woman would harm Rubin, but with the young debutante's inability to filter what she said, and Crimson being incredibly hard to read, it wasn't outside the realm of possibility.

 _They must be in one of these rooms,_ she reasoned, going from door to door to look for her doppelgängers. Most of the rooms were occupied with students sparring with each other (and in one case Professor Goodwitch teaching a class), though a couple she tried were locked.

 _Perhaps…_ , she thought, before shaking the idea away, _No, none of these doors appear forced open._

She was about to the room when she noticed a set of double doors at the very end of the hall were left open, and she could hear the sounds of fight the closer she got. She cautiously peered around the threshold, steeling herself for the worst should she find it.

And much to her relief that was not the case; Crimson and Rubin appeared to be sparring with each other, and not trying to seriously injure the other like she feared.

"You're still telegraphing your attacks too much," the elder woman said, parrying Rubin's strike with an almost ridiculous amount of ease, "And stop lunging so much; that's a finisher, not an opener!"

"But that's what you're _supposed_ to do!" the young debutante protested, "Besides, it's better to finish your opponent _quickly_ , right?"

"Maybe when you're fighting the Grimm, but against a human you need to-" Crimson paused her lecture when she suddenly notices they had an audience of one. "Hey Sister!" she called, "Wanna join us? I can fight two of you just as easily as one."

"Thank you," she said, taking that as permission to enter the room, "but I think I will decline. In any case, I do not have Crescent Rose with me at the moment." She took a seat on the edge of the arena, folding her hands on her lap. "May I ask what you both are doing?"

"I asked her to teach me how to fight better," Rubin supplied, "though she seems to have forgotten the _proper_ way to use a rapier."

"I haven't forgotten _nothing_ , toots!" Crimson then flicked her wrist in a way that disarmed Rubin and sent Eidlerote crashing into the seating next to Sister, who started a little.

"Please be more careful, Miss Crimson!" she chastised.

"Sorry…!"

"Th-th-that was a _fluke_!" Rubin pouted, "That wouldn't have happened if I wasn't _distracted_ …."

While Crimson once again rebuked Rubin ("That excuse wouldn't fly in a real fight."), Sister picked Eidlerote up and examined it, curious to see if or how it differed from the Myrtenaster she was familiar with.

 _It's an exact likeness,_ she noted, _Not exactly unexpected, given Rubin took the place of Weiss in her world. And if that's the case…_

"This really is an amazing weapon, Miss Schnee" she told Rubin, an idea taking form, "in both form and function."

" _Of course_ it is!" Rubin beamed, "Would you expect anything less of a _Schnee_ product?"

Sister shook her head. "No, I suppose not." She stood up, "Would you mind if I borrowed it for a moment? I've decided to take Miss Crimson up on her offer after all." Rubin briefly looked conflicted at the request, but eventually nodded her consent, stepping back to allow the older girl to take her place. "Thank you, I promise to treat this with the utmost care."

"Ready when you are," Crimson said adjusting the grip on her knife. She gestured for Sister to come at her.

Sister took a stance similar to Weiss's and lunges at Crimson, aiming for her center mass. Crimson made to block the strike, but it turn out to be a feint as Sister stopped short and slashed instead of stabbed. Crimson blocked it easily enough and went on the offensive, trying to stab at her younger doppelgänger.

Sister parried the strikes with ease, her borrowed weapon a flurry of motion as she fended off the more experienced woman, twirling with flare and grace. Eventually Crimson lunged at her and she spun out of the way, aiming a lunge of her own at Crimson's back as the woman traveled past her, though she quickly compensated for her blunder by rolling out of the way. She resumed her attack, and this time Sister blocked it with Eidlerote's guard.

"You're not half bad," Crimson said, "you could probably give my Weiss a good run for her money."

"Weiss and I often spar together in our free time," she explained, "so I've learned a few things from her, though I'm nowhere near her level."

"That's a load of bull!" Crimson chuckled, "You're way too modest."

"I prefer to let my actions speak for themselves." Sister suddenly broke the clash, spinning around and knocking Crimson on the head with Eidlerote's pommel. She followed it up with a similar strike to the woman's stomach and then a kick to the black of Crimson's leg, causing her to fall to her knees. Crimson quickly shook the hit off and turned around to continue her assault, only to find the tip of Eidlerote under her chin.

"...If you weren't me, I'd make out with you _so hard_ right now!" Crimson said, excitement and delight radiating from her face.

"I doubt I would feel the same in your position," said Sister, "but for what it's worth, I haven't had to apply myself like that to a fight in a long, long time." She lowered Eidlerote and exhaled, letting all the tension from the fight evaporate. Then she turned to Rubin, "Your thoughts, Miss Schnee?"

Rubin just gaped, having been transfixed on the fight almost the entire time, marveling at the absolute control Sister exhibited.

Despite her protestations, it was leagues beyond what Rubin was currently capable of.

"...how did you _do_ that?" she asked once she regained her senses, "I thought you said you weren't any _good_ with that?"

"I said I was not as good as Weiss," she clarified, "but as you saw, I am able to hold my own with my partner's weapon well enough." She sat back down in her seat from before, "Now, can you tell me what I did differently from you?"

Rubin thought for a moment.

"...I don't know," she came up with eventually, "none of my instructors ever _taught_ me to fight like that."

"In a way, that is exactly it." She held up the rapier for Rubin to see, "Tell me the most useful part of this weapon."

Now Rubin looked confused. "Um, the _blade?_ " she answered.

"True, but did not only use the blade when I fought, did I?" She presented the sword back to Rubin and continued, "I used the guard to defend myself from Miss Crimson's knife and the hilt to counterattack; my uncle always told me that there is no useless part of a weapon we he trained me how to use Crescent Rose, only new uses yet to be discovered." She sighed, "And while I'm sure you are quite skilled using Eidlerote the way you were taught, that can work against you, like when you attempted to harm Weiss when we first met."

Rubin was silent, absorbing Sister's words.

"The next time you're in a fight, remember to acknowledge _all_ parts of your weapon and give them equal consideration." Rubin chuckled. "...I wasn't aware that I said anything funny."

"That _sort of_ sounds like what Ozpin said about the Faunus," she admitted, staring at the ground.

"Hmm. It does, doesn't it?"

Crimson continued to sit on the floor, perfectly content to let Sister and Rubin talk. The little twerp seemed to take to her more than any of the others, even the person she specifically _asked_ to help her improve! The nerve! But results were results, and she could see that little gears turning in Rubin's head as she processed the information Sister gave.

Still, while she was glad that the little brat was finally getting clue, there was also a nagging feeling in the back of her mind that she was missing out on a perfect opportunity to settle a long held grudge….

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"I play _Giant Nevermore_!" Yang declared, holding up the card for Ruby and RJ to see.

" _My old nemesis_ …!" Ruby growled, glaring at the card.

"If I roll a 7 or higher, Fatal Feathers will ytar your armies apart," she explained for RJ's benefit, "and if I get a 6 or lower, I take damage instead." She rolled a pair of dice and got a 9. "Hope you two don't have a feather allergy!"

"Good move, good move," RJ praised, a sly grin on her face, "but you just activate my trap card!" She presented one of her own cards, "Hah! With this, your roll is cut in half, and the Giant Nevermore goes rogue and turns on you anyway!"

"Nooooo!" Yang cried to the heavens. She looked over at Weiss, wiping imaginary tears from her eyes, "Aren't you going to do anything to-"

Weiss simply held up a finger as she continued to peruse the massive book. "...so if your Ally is in need of assistance," she muttered, reading a passage.

" _Whyyyyyyy?!_ "

Yang regretted allowing Weiss on her team.

While this was going on, Blake took the opportunity to give Rosey further reading lessons, with Cress joining in because she thought the comic book they were using looked interesting.

"'D-don't do it, X-Ray!'," the young Faunus read, "'That'll c-cover ev-', _evur…."_

"'Everything'," Blake said, reading the longer word aloud for her charge.

"I kn-knew that…."

Blake patted her on the back. "Go on," she urged. Rosey nodded and continued reading just as Blake's Scroll buzzed with a new message.

"What's it say?" Cress asked as Blake read the text; she'd already read to the end of the current page and was getting impatient waiting for Rosey to finish.

"It's from Sister," she explained, "She found Rubin and Crimson, and they're all sparring."

"Does she say when they'll be back?" Yang asked, moving her Kingdom's pieces across the board.

"And is Rubin alright?" Weiss added, "I know _some of us_ were hoping otherwise."

"Hey, I'm just saying what everyone else is thinking!" the blond protested.

"Sister didn't say when they'd be back, Blake said, putting her Scroll away, "and she didn't mention Rubin being injured, so I think it's safe to assume she's fine."

Ruby let out a sigh of relief. "That's a relief…!"

"E-exactly," Rosey piped up. "She m-may be m-mean, but I w-wouldn't want her to get h-hurt because of it."

"That's a very mature attitude to have," Weiss told her, causing the young Faunus to blush at the compliment. Then she turned back to the game, "OK, I'm going play-"

"Can't," interrupted Yang, "Page 2409, rule 79b, clause 3."

"B-b-but I didn't even…!" Weiss sputtered.

"Weiss, _trust me_ when I say what you're planning won't work; I memorized the whole book back when I was eleven."

Weiss just stated at Yang, her eyebrow twitching spasmodically as she tried to wrap her mind around Yang's feat of impressive memorization.

"Pfft!" Cress giggled, "it's funny because traffic cones don't go there!"

 _to be continued..._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _OK, OK! I promise to start focusing on the other characters now! I honestly don't know where this Rubin stuff keeps coming from, but it sure is a good way to polish up my fight choreography! (For those wondering, I imagine Sister fighting with a mix of Swashbuckling, a la Zorro and the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, and the Lightsaber choreography from these movies George Lucas made around the turn of the century while using Eidlerote. Otherwise she just fights like Ruby normally does with Crescent Rose.)_

 _And now comes the part where y'all out there in readerland get to help shape how the next couple chapters will go! I want to have a little down time before going into the climax, so I need suggestions for things all the girls could do throughout the next day before the end of the Vytal Festival. It can be just about anything and involve pretty much any RWBY character, with a few restriction._

 _ **First, nothing M rated; I have zero plans to change the rating for this story, so any suggestion that don't match the the tone I've set so far will be rightly ignored.**_

 _ **Second, Cinder, Emerald, Mercury, Adam, and the final Ruby OC can't be included in your suggestions because, out of story, I already have plans for them, and in story they're trying to lay low until they make their next move.**_

 _ **Third, this still isn't a shipping story, so those kinds of suggestions also won't be considered.**_

 _Other than that, the sky's the limit! I'm going to put this story on hold temporarily so y'all can suggest stuff and so I can work on a couple ideas I've had for a while, but I fully intend to see this thing through to the end! So keep those reviews coming!_

 _(And go check out Snow White & the Huntsman by __Nina Vale_ _; I do the cleanup editing for that story, and both she and I like to hear our work is appreciated!)_


	13. Ready, set

_Welcome once again to another chapter of Distorted Mirror Images! This story has kinda become a bit of a Rubin fest in the last couple chapters, so I'm going to be a little more all inclusive for the next two maybe three. Not saying Rubin won't be there, but hopefully she won't eat up all the character development more than she already has._

 _So let's just jump right in, shall we?_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Somewhere in Vale..._

Neo had been laying low after her fight in the Tournament, doubly so after "The Plan" went awry, and honestly, she was pissed! She was looking forward to sneaking onto the Airship where they were keeping Roman, breaking him out, maybe slaughtering a few...dozen guards along the way...

She was a girl of simple tastes.

She was currently sitting at a café in the trendier part of the city, enjoying an overpriced bowl of ice cream that she wasn't going to pay for. She was also wearing her normal outfit, because wearing what she did in the tournament after things went south was just stupid. Across from her was Cinder, also dressed differently than normal.

"...and that's the new plan," the Huntress finished explaining. She took a sip of her drink, the ice clinking against the glass as she twirled it around afterward, "I trust you can manage well enough?"

The diminutive girl nodded excitedly, her eyes briefly shifting color before returning to "normal". If she were being completely honest this plan sounded a bit shaky to her, what with that little "wild card" that was now included especially; "powers comparable to a seasoned Huntsman" was a bold claim that most people would at least be a _little_ skeptical about, and while she wouldn't use that label for _herself_ , she doubted this new person, whoever they were, could beat her in a fair fight.

But that would never happen anyway, because she _never_ fought fair.

"Good." Cinder finished the drink and stood up, setting her glass on the table. Then she adjusted the wide brimmed hat she wore so it was tilted over one eye, "Be ready when you see the signal, it will be impossible to miss."

Neo refrained from raising a skeptical eyebrow and simply waved "Good bye!" to Cinder as the woman disappeared into the crowd. Once she was alone again she waited a couple minutes and then left the table, easily slipping into the throng of people passing by; if there was one good thing about the Vytal Festival, it was the vast amount of attendees that made it easy to slip away unnoticed.

She thought back to Cinder's plan, shaking her head. "Hard to miss", huh?

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _The next day…_

"So, everyone have a good night's rest?" Crimson asked, already chipper. After she, Sister and Rubin came back to the room they'd all went to dinner and discussed the sleeping arrangements now that there was a new Ruby. It didn't last long, since Crimson said she was fine sharing the floor with Sister and Cress. ("Compared to the normal ruined buildings and military cots, this is luxury for me!")

She'd somehow woken up before the others, even resident early riser Ruby Rose, and proceeded to rouse them from their slumber.

"Mm...how do you have so much energy?" RJ mumbled, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. "...what time is it anyway?"

"Not important!~" Crimson chirped, abruptly setting Cress on her feet. (The living weapon blinked a couple times in dull surprise, then fell back asleep where she stood.) "We've got a full day ahead of us, so let's make the most of it and do something fun!"

She was suddenly beaned in the face with a pillow.

"You had your _fun_ yesterday!" Rubin huffed, tugging Ruby's blankets tighter, "I'm not leaving this bed until I've had the _proper_ amount of beauty rest!" She turned over so she was facing the wall.

"Ahhh…! ...what's the hurry?" Ruby yawned, "The Vytal Festival doesn't end until tomorrow."

Crimson thought for a moment, tapping her chin. "Think of it as...seizing the day," she decided, "Besides, I didn't really get to enjoy the festival yesterday because of the whole 'I made scrap out of an entire platoon of killbots' thing…." She rubbed the back of her head sheepishly, "Sorta went overboard with that, huh?"

Yang groaned as she stretched her good arm. "You can say that again!" she said, "That place looked like a freaking junkyard! ...or Ruby's room when she's tinkering with Crescent Rose."

" _Yang!..._ "

"Did you have something particular in mind, Miss Crimson?" Sister asked, sitting up. Blake, Rosey and Weiss also sat up, now too awake to try at sleep again.

"Well…."

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"OK, you gals understand the rules?" the one eyed lady said. She and the other Ruby doppelgängers were standing outside the CCT tower in Vale as Crimson proceeded to reiterate the rules for her idea. "The first one to get from the CCT to the docks is the winner," she explained, gesturing from the tall building to some point in the distance as she walked up and down the line of doppelgängers, "You can use whatever method you want to get from point A to point B, barring vehicular transport, and you can't mess with each other."

"C-can we us our S-Semblances?" Rosey asked, raising her hand.

"Oh, of course! That's half the reason I wanted to do this thing in the first place!"

"What about me and Cress?" RJ asked, "We don't have Semblances like everyone else." Cress nodded her agreement.

"And Rubin has Weiss's Semblance," Ruby pointed out. Cress nodded again. "Not Speed like the rest of us."

"I can keep up with the rest of you _just fine_ ," the débutante assured them, looking smug, "I just hope that none of you _cry_ when I win this little contest!"

"Shameless overconfidence, that's the spirit!" Crimson praised, before addressing the valid points Ruby and RJ brought up. "'Little Miss Privileged' over there-"

" _Hey_!"

"-can augment her speed with her glyphs, and if I remember correctly Crescent Rose can transform into a gun, right?"

"Also a scythe," she said, "but not completely. Actually, before I ran into you guys, I-"

"Good enough," Crimson interrupted before Cress could go on a tangent, "Don't worry, I took all of that into account when I thought this up."

"But what about me?" insisted RJ, "I may be sporty, but I can't even run half a mile before I get winded! And you said we can't use cars."

" _You_ -" Crimson pointed directly at the teen. "-are going to wait with me at the finish line," she explained, "Since you're just a normal, powerless teenager, at least compared to the rest of Me's, I'm appointing you the official judge of this contest, to prevent any disputes over who wins."

"...I'm OK with that," she said, nodding her consent with the decision. Then she looked confused, "But that still doesn't explain how I'm supposed to get there!"

"I'll tell you in a minute." Crimson took out her wicked looking Crescent Rose and slashed a shallow gouge in the ground. "Everyone who's not RJ, stand behind there."

Ruby and the others looked at each other, shrugged, and stood behind the line.

"Perfect!" She took out a pistol, "Get ready to book it!" Then she began counting down, "Five...four-"

BANG! She fired the pistol into the air before she finished counting down, startling Rosey and Cress into sprinting forward. After a moment of hesitation the others followed, soon disappearing down the streets of Vale as they raced towards the docks.

Once they were alone, RJ turned to Crimson. "So _how_ am I getting there ahead of everyone else again?" she asked.

Crimson merely smirked, grabbed RJ (eliciting a squeak of surprise from the teen) and slung her over her shoulder.

"Hey, what am I, a sack of mee _eeeeeeeee!_ " she squealed as Crimson took off into the city at a speed RJ didn't think was possible for a human being to achieve, even taking into consideration all the crazy stuff she'd seen since getting transported here.

" _Oh yeah,_ " Crimson told her as an afterthought, " _hold on tight!_ "

 _to be continued…_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _So this one was a shorter chapter this time, mostly so I can pad the story a bit before we reach the climax, and partly because I want to actually focus on the race itself next time. By the way, shout out to Greeneagle120 for suggesting this idea. (I don't know if Rosey will win, Dude, but I hope the race is exciting nonetheless!)_

 _Anyway, I think I can reasonably stretch this part out for at least five, maybe six more chapters after this, so keep sending in suggestions! (Refer to last chapter for the rules regarding suggestions.) Or just drop a review anyway, I love hearing what y'all think of what I write!_

 _Next time we'll see how the race goes. Who will win? Tune in to find out!_


	14. GO!

_Alright guys, here's The Great OC Ruby Race, as promised! No preamble this time, let's just get right into it!_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Rosey's POV_

She wasn't expecting the gunshot, and for a moment her old instincts kicked back in and propelled her forward in "flight mode". Fortunately reason prevailed before too long and she calmed down enough to remember the race. She glanced behind her and saw the others- Cress, Sister, Ruby, and Rubin -following close behind her. She refocused on the road ahead and increased her speed, weaving through the crowds of people that occupied them.

Growing up in the slums of Vale and later Menagerie had the side effect of making her really good at evasive maneuvers, especially when every other day consisted of running from the soldiers and the Huntsmen who commanded them; the situation wasn't nearly so urgent now, though, and she as much more aware of the path she needed to take through the crowds without the threat to her life driving her.

"' _Scuse me! Pardon me; girl on a mission coming throu- sorry about your kid, ma'am!"_ Cress shouted from behind, bumping into more than a few pedestrians by the sound of things.

Ahead of her there was a roadblock set up, probably for that parade Blake's friends had mentioned. It didn't seem too difficult to jump over, but that wasn't how she was planning to get around it; she ducked down and stretched her body as flat as it could go and rolled underneath on her side, fluidly jumping back to her feet once she was on the other side.

It was a maneuver that had practically be one second nature to her.

She repeated the maneuver for the blockade on the other side of the cordoned off street and continued running towards her goal.

 _This is easy_ , she thought as she juked between people, actually allowing herself to enjoy the race with her other selves. _I can do this!_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Ruby's POV_

Like Sister and Rubin next to her, Ruby hadn't been expecting the gunshot Crimson fired to go off quite as soon as it had, and because of that she was near the back of the group when they finally started in earnest, with Sister being the only doppelgänger still behind her.

 _She didn't have to do that?_ the young Huntress in training thought as she vaulted over a roadblock, _It doesn't make any sense! I mean, she was already counting down, she didn't need to scare Cress and Rosey like that! Ooh, when I win this thing in going to give her such a piece of my-_

Then she realized something.

 _...oh my gawd, I'm turning into Weiss! No, bad Ruby; no turning into Weiss! Focus on beating all your other copies!_

After the roadblock there was another avenue crowded with even more people than the last. It didn't look too bad, but she's have to slow down a bit if she didn't want to keep bumping into people like Cress was. (Her declarations of "'scuse me, pardon me!" rang out every couple of seconds.)

" _Out of my way!"_ Rubin barked, actively shoving her way past people with little regard for how gentle she was being.

Ruby ignored that and focused on avoiding the people as she tried to catch up with her doubles.

After a few minute things got even harder when she noticed vendor stands popping up on the sides of the road, creating pockets of even denser crowds around them.

 _OK, this_ might _be a problem…_

Ruby actually passed Cress because of this, the loving weapon having trouble finding spaces to slip past people. Rosey continued to weave through the crowds with ease, and Rubin continued to muscle her way ahead, which actually worked in Ruby's favor as she slipped through the gaps Rubin made before the closed.

 _Alright Ruby, this isn't so bad. You just need to wait for an empty street and then I can use my Semblance to take the lead!_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Rubin's POV_

 _I_ really _wish I brought Eidlerote with me!_ griped Rubin as she shoved her way past a rotund man about to take a bite out of something that didn't look the slightest bit healthy. _Just a little bit of cyan Dust and I could have had a nice little corridor to run through! And if a certain version of me who happens to be a Faunus gets caught in the blast, well, it's_ her _fault for not getting out of the way._

She ducked under a woman's arm before she was accidentally clotheslined. She shook her head, _No, that wouldn't be sportsmanlike; it would be better to win through_ superior skill _than dirty tricks. And Crimson would probably know_ somehow _if I tried that. Not like I could if I wanted to, I don't have my-_

"Oof!" she squeaked as she collided with a wall of people packed together as tightly as possible. She was about to yell at them to get out of her way when she saw _why_ they were like that; there was a platform set up in the middle of the street were a pair of men were "performing" for the densely packed audience, with large speakers set up on either side of the stage.

This pretty much left the débutante standing at a dead end.

 _Dammit!_ she cursed, _Now what a I supposed to do, fly over it?_

She meant that as sarcasm (not that she said it out loud), but it got the wheels in her mind turning, and soon a solution presented itself.

 _It's not_ impossible _for everyone else to do, so it's not cheating,_ she rationalized, setting about circumnavigating the street concert, and a few well place "air steps" later she was running along the rooftops.

She briefly looked back down to see how the others would handle the obstacle: the "weapon" was still trying (unsuccessfully) to weave through the crowd, the Faunus was doing the same (only with better results), the her this world belonged to (sort of…) was attempting to climb up a building the hard way, and Sister was, impressively, wall running over the crowd, leaping from building to building whenever she started to lose momentum.

Rubin turned back to the roof and jumped over the edge, using her glyphs to make it safely to the next rooftop.

If she wasn't so intent on winning this silly contest, she would probably be a little impressed at her competition.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Sister's POV_

Sister was playing this smart. Not to say the other doppelgängers weren't clever in their own right, but they weren't taking into account their own physical limits. To put it simply, they would most likely exhaust themselves long before the end goal was in sight.

 _Perhaps they will learn something from this,_ she mused.

She always thought like this, especially since Yang was accepted into Beacon. Her younger sister could charitably be described as "introverted", "a wallflower" if one wanted to sound poetic, so she'd taken it upon herself to help guide the blonde as best she could, teaching her how she could improve after each failure and urging her to step out of her comfort zone.

Her copies weren't nearly as hesitant as her sister, but they were still young, and if she could impart wisdom to that that would make their lives a little easier in the long run then all the better.

As for her, she was saving her energy, letting the others wear themselves down until the end was in sight. She felt a tad ashamed at herself for taking advantage of "herselves" like this, but she also wanted to win, a trait she shared with her younger counterparts that she never really grew out of.

She was often called a prodigy, and she would do her best to live up to the label.

 _Do not make this too easy for me_ , she silently pleaded to her doppelgängers, _I will try my best, and I expect nothing less from you all!_

She glanced upward and saw Rubin running along the rooftops, using her glyphs to cross the gaps between buildings, followed closely by this world's native Ruby, who used small bursts of her Semblance to assist her leaps.

 _Well done, both of you!_

She looked ahead and adjusted her path so she safely passed by a deer Faunus pushing a coffee cart in front of her. She was only just behind Rosey, the young Faunus reflexively threading her way through the crowd; this meant that Cress was still bringing up the rear.

She had a soft spot for the girl, one similar to her sisterly affection for Yang outside of the obvious connection they and the others shared. She looked back just as Cress emerged from the concert audience, allowing herself a small bit of pride for the Living Weapon.

 _Best of luck, Crescent Rose; do not lose heart!_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Cress's POV_

"*gasp*!" Cress gasped as she finally emerged from the mass of people, stumbling for a bit before she regained her footing and continued on.

 _Good grief, that was brutal!_ she mentally sighed, _Seriously, why were there so many people there? The music wasn't even that good!_ She shook her head in bewilderment as she tried to purge the experience from her mind. _And have any of these people taken a shower recently? It was like going through The Vacuous Swamp in there! ...he he, Myrty took, like, twenty showers when we got back from that mission!_

She chuckled as she ran, memories of the mission in question replaying in her mind. _She was SO miffed, going on about 'These were my best shoes! I'll never get this stench out of my hair! How are none of you bothered by this?'. And Ember was laughing the whole time! And Shroud was all 'It's your own fault for not watching where you were going'. Heh, I don't think I've ever seen Myrty so mad befHELLO!_

There was a random rock in the middle, and because Cress was getting lost in thought she didn't notice it was there until she was already tripping over it. She stumbled forward for a few steps before regaining her balance.

 _The heck did that rock come from?! ...alright Crescent Rose, time to put on your 'Serious Face'!_

With her brow furrowed the living weapon put on more speed, charging full steam ahead. She leaped on the top of one stands and started jumping from stand to stand, forgetting the sweaty, stinky crowd altogether. _I should have done this_ years _ago!_

She was still behind everyone else, now she was actually gaining ground. Occasionally she came to a gap too large to jump over normally, but a quick transformation into a gun took care of that easily.

 _Awright! Back in the game!_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"Look, I'm sorry about your motion sickness," Crimson apologized. RJ was on her knees by the edge of the dock they'd stopped at, moaning and occasionally dry heaving as she leaned over the side. Crimson was standing behind her, "but in my defense, it never came up in all the time I've known you, even if that time only amounts to one day!"

RJ groaned again and talked over her shoulder, "It's fine, it doesn't really come up normally for me anyway; it only ever becomes a big problem on long trips." She took a deep breath and exhaled it somewhat laboriously. "Can we take the bus back when this is over, please?"

"Eh, that's fair," the warrior woman shrugged. She peeked over RJ's should, wincing slightly as she noticed the teenager's newly acquired sickly parlor. "You gonna be OK?"

RJ nodded weakly. "It usually goes away once I have a good purge," she explained, "so...eventually."

"I could help that along, if you want?"

RJ raised an eyebrow at the offer. "You're not going to punch me in the gut, are you?"

Crimson shook her head. "No no," she assured RJ, waving dismissively, "I'm not like Yang; I know how to be _subtle_." She sat down next to the nauseous teenager, swinging her legs over the side. "So let me tell you a little about life in the Robot Apocalypse…."

 _to be continued…_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _And they're off! Rosey takes an early lead and it seems like it's her race to lose! Rubin's coming up strong in second place, though Sister looks like she has something up her sleeve. And though starting out weak, Cress is finally starting to hit her stride; it could be anyone's game!_

 _For those wondering, that was done in an old timey horse race announcer voice._

 _Anywho, next time will be the conclusion to the race, plus something a little special suggested by one of the last batch of reviewers. (Keep suggesting stuff! This fluff period is still going to go on for another few chapters, so get your suggestions in now!)_


	15. Son of Jester of the Forth Moon!

_Hey everyone! Layman here!_

 _Gigi: Qi qiqi!_

 **Greetings, I'm Neo, _greets the Might and Powerful Magical Neo_** _._

 _And welcome to the next chapter of Distorted Mirror Images!_ Man, _took us a while to break out of that pocket dimension, didn't it?_

 _Gigi: *scratches head* Qiqi qiqiqi qiqi, qiqi?_

 _Not a clue. *looks at Neo* Neo, you're our resident expert on the Eldritch, any idea how that happened?_

 _ **The Adorable and Not At All Responsible Magical Neo kicks the ground by her Venusian feet, suddenly finding it very interesting.**_ **It...** ** _may_ have something to do with this chain letter I received the other day, _Her Ladyship explains, an alluring blush adorning her porcelain cheeks,_ It said to copy and forward it to thirty people or else me and my loved ones would be sucked into a pocket dimension made entirely of pistachios. **

_Gigi: Qiiiiiii...! *nods*_

 _So you didn't send it on?_

 **N-no, I did..., _Her Ladyship bashfully admits, rubbing her arm,_ but I think I may have only done it _twenty-nine_ times...**

 _Gigi: *headsmacks*_

 _...Well, we're out now, and that's what matters. Anywho, you guys want to watch a movie? I just got the new one from the Director with No Specific Identity before all this happened._

 **I suppose, _the Reluctant and Hesitant Magical Neo reluctantly gives in,_ so long as it isn't like the _last_ movie of his...**

 _Gigi: ...qi qiqiqiqi qiqi?_

 _I don't know, maybe? He did say in interviews that he was doing something different than normal. *turns to readers* You guys can watch too! Just give me a second, and...here!_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

awther's note; dis is like da best ting i've evar riten, so dont f\lam it ok? I no wut im doin!

So lyke hi mi nam is Gabriella Entropy RubyRaven Lilith Desire Fall and im a huntrees at Beecin and im like 15 yers old nd im on team GOFF. I hav short black hare with red hylites (its nut like rubys ok!111111 Its orginle!1111) and one bit ov gren in my bangs (see!1!1!111111) that I always wore in a ponytail. I ware a black BVB tshirt 9if u dont no what that is im not tellin!111111) and a black skiny jeens with a studed belt that I wore loos so it hun at a angel ande my wepon is like the aloosinater from SAO an it can tern into a gun (stp saying its like rubyu its not!111111!1!1!0 and mi semblinse is imortalatee so I can never dy. Im on teem GOFF but I dont like them ther all fak an tem ruby is better so I alway han out with them. My favorite one is blake cuz shes goff like me and her kitty ear are the cutest thin ever!1!1!1!1!1!1 we hung out all the tim and red awsum books 2gether lik twilite and coll wyss a bich BECUZ SHE'Z TOTULY A BICH!1!1!1! She'z like a SUPER BICH she'z all like im wyss, I can do enything cuz im rich. Ennyway me ruby yang blake and wyss was hangin out in rubys rom and yang was like we shud all go to vital an I wuz like suer an we went to vital and then we swa sun wokan ane neptpoon and dey wer like helo and I wuz like just kis alredy and wys wuz like he'z only kissing me cuz he'z my boyfrend and wuz like eew gros! and sun wuz all like catfight! cuz he'z a totul perv who peeks in windows like sum perv. Ruby wuz like but blakes ovar ther and I wuz lyke thats not wut he ment dummy! enyway I kiked him in the bals and told him tah go jump ina lake and then a siad to black lets go and we went and went to tuksins book shop and read twilite until it got darak adn we went bacl to the room and beet up cradin cuz he' a doosh and wuz deeting up velvet andturwzxjbb;gfcjgrshgfcmvxhfszmbvdrwa,m;;pokp[imhoeyrmn/lkkjdjv ,

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Um...WOW! I enjoy some avant-Gard stuff, but that was...I remember the Director with No Specific Identity being a lot less-_

 _Gigi: Qiqi qi qi?_

 _No! ...I was thinking of going with "experimental", actually._

 **I've stared down Ycnàgnnisssz a couple times before, _the Traumatized and Clawing Out Her Own Eyes Magical Neo stammers,_ and _THAT_ was almost more than I could bear...**

 _Gigi: Qiqi-qiqiqi qiqi qi qiqiqiqiqi?_

 _*shrugs* I thought it would be more like Unoriginal Romance movie...?_

 **Remind me again, _why_ do you continue praising this director? **

_Hey, his last movie was great! At least, the half of it I saw in the theater..._

 _Gigi: *nods* Qiqiqiqi qiqi!_

 **Sigh..., _Her Ladyship sighs,_ the pistachio dimension was less mentally scarring than that...I hesitate to actually call it a "movie"...**

 _Why don't we all go to Neo's place and forget all about this travesty with Ice Cream headaches?_

 _Gigi: *nods rapidly* QI!_

 _ **The Eager and Willing Magical Neo heartily agrees with the sentiment.**_ **I did order a surplus of "Shoggoth Salad" that could be dipped into...**

 _Excellent! *turns to readers* See you next time, folks!_


	16. And Finish!

_Alright, this is where the race ends! Who will emerge victorious when the dust clears? Read on and find out! Also, thanks to Michael7123_ _for [sort of] suggesting the cameo that will appear this chapter! (Go check out his story "When Allied Together". It's an interested read.)_

 _Also, who enjoyed that April Fools last chapter? (Leave a review and let me know.)_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"...and that's what happened to most of the Faunus," Crimson finished explaining. "Did that do the trick?" she asked, patting RJ on her back.

This prompted yet another round of dry heaves from the teenager, though this time it was because she just didn't have anything left to purge.

"I _really_ hate you right now…!" she moaned. The one eyed woman's explanation of the Post Apocalypse had started out normal enough, nothing RJ hadn't already seen in the popular media, but before long she'd started going to _painfully_ intricate detail about the living conditions, the many and varied corpses she'd seen over the years, and all the ways the robot hordes had demoralized the last remnants of humanity, in all their _extremely_ graphic detail.

She'd be lucky if she were ever able to not feel nauseous ever again…

"Oh _please_ , you should be thanking me!" the woman said, seemingly oblivious to RJ's condition, "It's not like I told you about my sex life or anything…."

"Please spare me," RJ pleaded weakly, "I don't think I have any innocence left for you to _brutally murder with a tire iron_!"

"Hey," Crimson admitted, her hands held in surrender, "I never implied my methods were pretty!" She stood back up and scanned the city for any sign of her doppelgängers. "I wonder what's taking everyone so long?"

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Qrow sat in his usual spot at the Crow Bar, knocking back another shot of liquor. He'd pretty much been celebrating Yang's win of the Tournament, and deservedly so, considering the grief she got from the scandal with that Mercury kid.

"Little _pissant_ and his... _Emerald_ ," he mumbled, "The hell did they think they were accomplishing with that? That couldn't have been all there was to that…." He motioned for the bartender to come over, holding up his glass. "Hey, pour me another!"

"Sure!" he said obliging the Huntsman. "You must be pretty happy for that blonde girl that won, you've been here every day since."

"You betchya!" Qrow knocked the shot back and gestured for another. "She's my brother-in-law's kid, a real firecracker, that one. Bit of a temper on her, but she's a good kid at heart; I guess you could say she wears her heart on her sleeve, kind of." He repeats the gesture. "Take's after her mother a lot, actually…." He stares down at his glass, watching the amber liquid inside as he swishes it around. "Could've at least showed up and told her 'good job', rotten bitch…."

The bartender raised a wary eyebrow but declined to comment.

Qrow then handed a flask to the bartender, "Fill this up for me, will ya?"

The bartender nodded, taking the flask. "Any preference?" He asked.

He shook his head, stating "Just give me whatever" as he slid a Lien card over the bar.

" _Hi Uncle Qrow!"_

Qrow perked up, immediately looking around for the source of the instantly recognizable voice, spotting Ruby waving to him from outside the establishment.

"Rosebud-?"

" _Can't talk right now gotta go see ya bye!"_ she called before racing off down the street, leaving a flurry of rose petals in her wake.

The grizzled Huntsman wouldn't have thought too much off it, expect that a few seconds later his niece ran by again and shouted "Hi Uncle Qrow!" before jumping into the air, morphing her bottom half into a gun barrel, and shooting off after "herself".

A moment later she ran by again, only this time she was dressed like her Schnee friend, complete with matching white cloak, with some kind of yellow glow around her, and she was jumping on glyphs like the ones the Schnees made. (For what it's worth, she didn't acknowledge him.)

He got up and headed outside the bar, crossing the threshold just in time to nearly run into an oddly older looking version of his niece, also with a white cloak.

"Pardon me, Uncle!" she said, also disappearing in a flurry of rose petals.

"Wuh…?"

He was so flabbergasted that he almost missed his niece run by for a _fifth_ time.

"Did...did she have... _dog ears_ …?"

"Here's your flask," the bartender said, holding Qrow's flask out to him. "Um...you OK over there?"

"Yeah…," he said absently, waving dismissively at the barkeep, "You hold onto that for me…."

He then began walking listlessly back to his temporary room at Beacon, deciding that he'd "celebrated" more than enough for now and should probably sleep a little of his "celebration" off.

"Maybe I drank the worm or something?..."

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"Here they come!" Crimson announced as she spotted the rest of the doppelgängers round a corner and head for the pier she and RJ were on. "Took 'em long enough!"

"Looks like Ruby's in the lead," the teenager noted. She was feeling a little better now, but not enough that she thought she could handle food just yet, "and everyone else isn't too far behind her."

Crimson nodded, now focused on the racers. At some point Ruby must have found a shortcut or something, hence why she was now in the lead instead of Rosey. The young Faunus was now in the rear of the procession, directly behind Sister. Cress and Rubin brought up the second and third places respectively, all of the girls rapidly closing the distance between each other as they neared the end.

"Whoever makes it to the end of the pier first is the winner!" she shouted, pointing at the now revealed goal.

"Did they even catch that?" RJ wondered.

"Eh, if they didn't I'll just tell 'em again when they get here."

As they got closer, RJ began to notice something about them. She'd done sports for a good portion of her life, long enough to recognize when someone was getting exhausted, and she was definitely seeing the signs on the faces of her other selves: Ruby, Rosey, Cress and Rubin were all panting heavily, with the sweat of their exertion glistening in the early afternoon sun. Sister, however, despite her looking as sweaty as the rest, was running as strongly as she did at the start of the race with no sign of slowing down. She had a determined look in her eyes that reminded RJ of a cheetah or a panther or some other type of large wildcat getting ready to pounce. And sure enough the graceful young lady made her move, using a controlled burst of her Semblance to shoot into the lead.

However, whether by skill or by sheer dumb luck, Rosey grabbed onto the end of her older self's cloak as she passed, causing her to crash into Ruby. This in turn caused the young Faunus to crash into both of them, which itself in turn caused Rubin and Cress to join the impromptu dogpile, unable to move of the way fast enough, the five of them tumbled to a stop right in front of Crimson's combat boots.

"You know," the cyclopean woman said, "I honestly didn't see that coming."

"Get _off_ of me!" Rubin shouted, shoving the other doppelgängers aside, "Do you know how _much_ these clothes cost!?"

"*gasp!*" Cress gasped as she crawled out from underneath everyone else, getting at least ten feet away from the others before resuming her emergency air intake. "When was the last time you guys took a shower?" she asked.

Rosey fidgeted, bopping her pointer fingers together. "Um, w-well…."

"I don't think any of us have for the last couple days," Ruby interjected, "I'm pretty sure RJ's the only one of us who has, and that's just because of how we found her."

" _Technically_ I found you," RJ pointed out, "Though now that I think about it, I'm probably due for a top up."

"Not _me_ ; _I'm_ still as clean as I was the day I was _born_!"

Crimson raised an eyebrow at the debutante. "A. that's not how that phrase works," she counted off, "and B. your pit stains say otherwise."

Rubin scoffed and huffily folded her arms. After a few seconds she tried to imperceptibly raise her left arm and sniff, not quite succeeding at going unnoticed, and recoiled back, her eyes watering slightly.

"Th-this proves _nothing_!" she protested, trying to act like she wasn't bothered by her own fragrance.

"Trying" being the operative word.

"I believe baths are in store for _all of us_ when we return to Beacon," Sister observed, "the sooner the better."

"Um, question!" Cress interjected, raising her hand, "Did anyone win the race yet?"

This gave all of them pause; they _hadn't_ decided that yet, had they?

"Eh, not like it really matters," Crimson shrugged, "I didn't even have a prize ready anyhow."

All the participants glared at the battle hardened woman.

"Then _why_ did we even have to do this on the first place?" Rubin asked through gritted teeth.

"I sorta just wanted to see which of my others selves was faster."

They all began to slowly march towards her.

"N-n-now w-wait a minute!" she stammered, backing up now that she was actually starting to fear for her life, "I mean we all had fun, right? I-it's not anyone got hurt- I'm not afraid to hit girls, don't think I won't!" She continued backing up until she reached the end of the pier, quickly catching her balance before she fell into the water.

This lasted all of two second as she suddenly felt someone trip her, Rubin capitalizing on the opportunity by casting a repulsion glyph in front of the woman, sealing her fate.

SPLASH!

Everyone peered over the edge where Crimson disappeared; a moment passed before her head popped back out of the water, spitting and sputtering.

"That's for giving me chronic nausea," RJ declared, looking imposing from her new vantage point over the older woman, "Now we're even."

Crimson just sighed, chuckling. "Yeah, I guess I deserved that…."

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"Well, this is interesting…," Mercury mused, his eyes following the group of six (maybe seven?) Ruby Roses heading back towards the city. He'd been wandering aimlessly around Vale- "to test out the repairs he made to his leg" was the excuse he'd give if Cinder asked when he got back -doing whatever happened to catch his fancy. He was getting stir crazy just sitting around the warehouse, and it didn't help that _everyone_ was busy with something else, from Cinder down to the average White Fang grunt; even Emerald was busy keeping their new Pipsqueak occupied while her "Mhastina" was elsewhere, so he couldn't drag her along for some petty deviancy, which the bronze skinned girl was usually up for.

He'd run across the group of uncannily identical girls by accident, but he was glad he did.

"Better let the Boss know about this," he said to himself as he followed after them, taking out his special modified Scroll and calling Emerald. It would have been better to call Cinder directly, but he just wanted to give her a hard time; she _was_ one of the reasons the Plan had fallen apart in the first place, after all.

After a few rings the call connected.

 _#Where the hell are you?#_ Emerald snapped, not even pretending to bother with pleasantries, _#We're the_ supposed _to be laying low,_ you _most of all, Mr. "Has a broken leg"!#_

"I got bored," he said, shrugging, "And I'm wearing a disguise, Em, I'm not stupid."

 _#Wearing shades and hat_ isn't _a disguise!#_ she protested.

"Neither is messing with people's' minds to make them not notice you, but you don't hear _me_ whining about that, do you? Besides, I also have my hood up, so everything's cool."

Emerald probably would have continued arguing with her "partner", but a commotion on the other end of the line chose that moment to interrupt their "conversation".

 _#Hey! Stay away from the Dust!#_ Emerald shouted, _#Fire plus Dust equals Bad, you got that, kid?#_ She sighed, _#Did you legitimately want something, or were you just calling to be an ass?#_

"So you know the knockoff Pipsqueak we found?"

 _#So, to be an ass, then.#_

"Shut up for a second, OK? Turns out she's not the only one."

 _#Hang on, you mean there's more of her?#_

"I mean there's more knockoff Pipsqueaks, yes. At least six of them, plus this older woman who may or may not be related to them, it's hard to tell from here."

 _#You're following them?#_

"Yeah. They're walking through the city right now, looks like they're headed towards the fairgrounds, though. I'm gonna keep following them, I'm feeling the need for a Pizza-on-a-Stick."

 _#*sigh*, Mercury…!#_

"Don't get your panties in a bunch, I'm still gonna follow them, I just want something to eat while I do." He paused for a moment. "Tell Cinder for me, will you? I'm gonna be a while."

 _#Ugh! Just tell her yourself, you- Get that...tree thing out of here! It's shedding rose petals all over the-#_

Mercury ended the call, pocketing the Scroll as he continued to follow the group towards their destination, which was most likely the Festival fairgrounds.

"Have fun babysitting, Em. I'll bring you back a pretzel or something."

 _to be continued…_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Wah wah...! Yeah, I went there, no one wins. Ultimately, I decided it was better to have fun with the concept rather than to spend forever figuring out which of five incredibly similar OCs was slightly faster than the others. The way I always figured it was that Crimson was the fastest, RJ, being a normal teenager with no special extrahuman powers, is the slowest (though being sporty she'd probably be able to hold her own in a foot race), and everyone else is on a level plane in between (including the as-of-yet unnamed OC)._

 _That said, I still had fun doing the race itself; it was good practice at writing the different OCs, and the Qrow segment is now one of my favorite moments in the story! (Thanks again to_ _Michael7123_ _for the suggestion!)_

 _I also had fun with the Mercury bit at the end. I've got a couple ideas I want to do, but those really deserve their own chapters, and I needed something else to fill out the rest of the word count for this chapter. Phone conversations are always fun, and when he's not being stone cold Mercury's really snarky!_

 _Anyway, next time it's more lighthearted fun, this time at the Vytal Festival! We're also going to split the party again, so tune in to find out who's in which half._


	17. Healthy food and Dem Abs

_OK folks, let's take a look at what the first group of OC is doing!_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"So what should we do now?" Ruby asked as the seven of them made their way through the Vytal Festival fairgrounds, "I don't know about you guys, but I'm kinda hungry now."

"Yeah, me too!" Cress said, holding her stomach, "I'm so hungry, I think I could eat a whole _ephalent_!"

"I think you mean 'elephant'," RJ corrected the living weapon.

"Ugh, you both _obviously_ mean a Goliath!" scoffed Rubin, shaking her head, "Nobody uses that archaic name anymo-"

At that moment her stomach let out a mammoth growl, interrupting the debutante mid word.

They all stares at her stomach, then at her face. (Rosey hid behind Sister slightly.)

For a moment, no one said anything.

"Nobody...say... _anything_!..." she said, her cheeks turning pinkish.

"I'm feeling quite famished as well," Sister spoke up, "getting something to eat sounds wonderful!" She gently moved Rosey back into the open, "May I assume the rest of you feel the same?"

" _Banzai!_ " Ruby, Cress, Rosey and Crimson all cheered, raising their fists in the air and tilting slightly to the right.

"I'm still _queasy_ from earlier," RJ said, glaring pointedly at Crimson, "but I think I can handle a coke or something."

Crimson sighed, "I'm never gonna live that down, am I?"

RJ just shook her head slowly.

"I _suppose_ it would be prudent to keep my strength up; we _did_ just run across the city, after all," Rubin begrudgingly admitted, quickly adding "But _only_ something healthy! I don't want _another_ culinary monstrosity forced on me…."

"I'd _kill_ for a Pizza in a Cup!" Crimson moaned, drooling a little, "I have _literally_ not had one of those things in years!"

Rubin glared at the woman, her eyebrow twitching violently.

"I-I'm f-fine with anything…," Rosey declared meekly, shuffling her feet.

Sister regarded the young Faunus closely; her face looked slightly flushed, though not from her usual shyness or embarrassment. It could have been due to exhaustion; despite her keeping the lead for most of the impromptu race, impressively so, she still grew up in poverty for pretty much her whole life (At least, according to the accounts of Rosey's life they managed to occasionally coax out of her.) so she was probably exhausted from slight malnutrition.

"Then in that case, Rosey, Rubin and I are going to search for some healthy food," the young lady announced suddenly, "Would anyone else like to join us?"

Everyone else shook their heads.

"That sounds nice and all," Ruby said diplomatically, "but I'm sorta on this all cookie diet…."

Cress tried to look as serious as she could, which ended up looking like a parody of seriousness than anything sincere, "I'm actually allergic to healthy food."

"And I've had nothing but canned food, military rations, and whatever the hell I've been able to scavenge in the wild for the last decade of my life," Crimson listed off, "so I'm gonna binge on junk food until I look like Admiral Port."

"Don't you mean 'professor'?" Ruby asked, to which Crimson shook her head.

"He promoted himself after everything went down initially," the woman explained. "Not sure why, since we didn't really have an airship fleet anymore, but it just sort of stuck after that."

"Very well," the graceful Huntress in training sighed, "then we shall rendezvous with the rest of you later; the three of us will be at the concert stage when we're finished." She then reached into her cloak and took out a couple of Lien cards and handed them to RJ, "This should be enough for each of you to get something."

"Hey!" Crimson whined, "How come _she_ gets to hold the money? I'm _older_!"

"True," Sister nodded, "but you aren't exactly any wiser for it." She turned back to RJ as Crimson balked, "I trust you will ensure that I will receive some change when we meet back up?"

"Sure thing." RJ stuck the money in the pocket of her jeans, "I'll make sure we don't go overboard on the snacks."

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

After the two groups parted ways, Rosey, Sister and Rubin made their way through the Festival grounds in search of something nutritious to eat.

"So, I've got a _question_ ," Rubin said as they walked passed stands selling fair food, "How come you have all that money on you?"

"Well, it's something of an emergency fund," the graceful young lady explained, "My little sister can be somewhat forgetful, so I've gotten into the habit of carrying extra cash on hand in case she forgets to bring her wallet with her." She shrugged, "I decided that it would be worth tapping into if it meant not having to take advantage of Weiss's charity."

"Y-yeah, that's a g-good idea," Rosey praised.

"Heh! Fortunately, _I've_ never had to rely on _charity_ in my life!" Rubin boasted. "That's the _beauty_ of being a part of the _richest_ family in the _world_!"

Sister exhaled tiredly. "Pride should be worn with restraint and dignity, Miss Schnee, not broadcast with wild abandon."

"Tch! And who told you _that_?" she scoffed.

"My mother did. She taught me that it's better to compliment other than to compliment yourself; people who inflate their own importance are often attempting to- to…." She tailed off, her eyes adopting a far off look to them.

" _Attempting_ to...what?" the debutante wondered. "If you're _going_ to insult someone, you could at least _finish_ the insult!" She waved a hand in front of the older girl's face to try and get her attention.

"Wh-what's she looking at?" Rosey asked, following Sister's line of sight.

Perched on top of the back of a bench was Sun Wukong, lazily munching on what looked like a pizza that was folded and spiked on a shishkebab stick. As usually he was wearing his open jacket, he chest and abs on full display.

"Um, S-sister? A-are you...d-do you have a c-crush on him?"

This snapped Sister out of her daze, and she stared at Rosey in wide eyed shock.

"I d-don't have... _f-feelings_ for Mr. Wukong!" she stammered, her reddening face belying her protest, "W-w-why would th-think that?"

Before the young Faunus could answer Rubin suddenly burst out laughing, practically rolling on the ground as she guffawed.

" _Oh! My! GAWD!_ " she cried, holding her sides, "You _actually_ have a crush on that, that…! _That's_ something straight out of a harlequin novella, that is, you having feelings for that...Faunus _rapscallion!_ "

"Not so loud, please!" Sister pleaded, "It's...quite embarrassing…."

" _I'll_ say it is; I don't know whether you're crazy or just stupid, but this is _the_ funniest thing I've heard since coming here!" She wiped a tear from her eye, "Oh wow, I _needed_ that!"

"D-does he know?" Rosey asked, "Y-your Sun Wukong, I mean."

Sister shook her head. "I've never told him, I've always been too shy around him. Though, for some reason, Yang never seems to have that problem." She chuckled, "Ironic, is it not? In this one instance, my sister and I have traded places…."

Rosey smiled, albeit shakily, and pet her older self on the shoulder. "I-it's OK," she comforted, "if you l-like him, y-you should t-tell him so."

"U-um, I don't know if I can…." She bopped her pointer fingers together sheepishly, "Coco says it's because of 'dem abs'."

By this point Sun had finished his fairground treat and tossed it into a nearby trash can, pumping his fist as it smoothly dropped in. He jumped down from the bench and folded his arms behind his head, and headed off to do whatever he did in his own time.

"You sh-should just l-let him know you like him," Rosey told her, "In m-my world, Faunus don't r-really l-live very long, s-so when w-we find someone we l-like, w-we tell them im-mediately so we c-can make kids."

Sister immediately blushed bright scarlet and tried to hide under her cloak's hood.

"And as pleasant as the image of _animals mating_ is," Rubin sneered, her sarcasm palpable, "I'm still _hungry,_ so if you two could hurry up and _find_ something healthy to eat, that would be _swell_."

"Y-yes! Good idea!" Sister blurted out, happy for the distraction, "Let's get some food, shall we?" She hurriedly began marching in the opposite direction the monkey Faunus had, making a very conspicuous show of searching for a place to eat.

Rosey and Rubin followed after her, each with very different reactions to the revelation of their elder's…"romantic urges"; Rubin wore her disgust on her sleeve, occasionally muttering to herself about "a lapse in good sense" and "lost respect", while Rosey was having trouble wrapping her mind around why Sister would let Sun Wikong know she liked him. She wasn't the most extroverted of Faunus, even among her own kind, but she still understood that if two people liked each orher they should act in those feelings before it was too late.

Her mind flashed back to all the people in her life that she'd loved in some capacity: her mother and sister, Weiss (as brief as their friendship was…), her uncle and the other members of the White Fang who took care of her...it hurt to remember some of them, but she was glad that she even had those memories at all. In a world as cruel as it was, those bits of happiness were her most precious possessions and it made her sad and confused why Sister apparently didn't want that same happiness for herself.

But the older girl clearly didn't want to talk about it, so Rosey decided to just leave it alone for the moment.

"Stop looking so _depressed_ and hurry up!" Rubin called back to the young Faunus, "I'm _not_ going to wait for you if you fall behind!"

"C-coming!" she called back as she picked up her pace.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"I can't _believe_ my card got rejected!" Rubin gripes as the three of them took their food and headed off to the concert stage, "There _should_ have been plenty of money left on it!"

"You're from a different world," Sister shrugged, "so there is no guarantee that everything we brought from our worlds will work with everything here. Frankly, I'm a little surprised that my Lien was still accepted."

"Well it _should_ work!" the debutante protested, huffily crossing her arms, "It was _humiliating_!"

Sister sighed but let her other self brood. She could tell there was a kinder side to the girl, what with how she seemed to be making an effort to put Rosey down less, but some behaviors were more firmly entrench than others, it seemed.

Speaking of Rosey, she glanced down at the young Faunus and saw that she was digging into her Tuna sandwich with great aplomb, similar to how she remembered Blake did when the cat Faunus thought no one was looking.

"How is it?" she asked.

Rosey swallows her dos and looked up at Sister, smiling. "I-it's a bit s-salty, b-but it's good!"

"Hmph, it's _just_ tuna…," Rubin mumbled, "not like it's _lobster_ or anything _special_ like that…."

Rosey hesitantly held her sandwich out to Rubin. "D-do you want a bite?" she offered.

"Absolutely _not_!" Rubin scoffed, "I've _already_ had to suffer the _indignity_ of someone else paying for my food, I'm _not_ going to accept handouts on top of that!" She snapped at Sister, "Where's my _food_?"

"Here you are," Sister handed Rubin a plastic container, "Would you like to find a place to sit?"

" _Of course,_ you dunce!" She snatched the container from Sister's hands and marched on ahead, "I _may_ even let you both sit with me if we find a good enough _spot_!"

 _to be continued…._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _So who would have guessed that Sister had a crush on Sun Wukong? I mean, I can understand why (just look at those abs, people!), but I still didn't see it coming!_

 _And D'aw~! Rubin's warming up to everybody! (Her "Tsundere" is starting to show a bit…)_

 _Next time we'll check in on the other gals, so stay tuned!_


	18. Pennies and half eaten pretzels

_Alright, here's the other [kinda sorta] half of the Ruby's!_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

" _Banzai!_ " Ruby, Cress and Crimson all cheered before digging into their deep fried cookies, ice cream sundae, and Pizza-in-a-cup respectively. RJ also joined in the cheer, though she merely took a sip of her soda.

" _Deef ur_ fo goob!" Ruby said, muffled, " _Ah cud ferioufwy eat deef fohevah!_ "

"Same here!" exclaimed Cress. She scooped up another spoonful of her icy treat, practically twinkling in delight as the sugary coolness touched her taste buds.

RJ chuckled. "You look like Sam whenever she has pancakes!" She tapped her chin thoughtfully, "And Belden around tuna, oddly enough."

"This is even better than SEX!" Crimson moaned in a rather suggestive manner, her eyelids fluttering in an equally suggestive manner as the pleasure of the junky fair food threatened to overwhelm her.

This nearly caused RJ and the others to spit take. "Really?" she accused, "I don't think they heard that in- ...what this world's equivalent of China?"

A bunch of question marks floated over Ruby and Cress's heads.

"What's 'China'?" the young Huntress asked, swallowing her food.

"A place people usually refer to that's really far away," she explained simply.

"Oh. Then I guess that would be West Vacuo."

RJ nodded her thanks and turned back to Crimson, "I don't think they heard you in _West Vacuo_ yet!"

"What's 'sex'?" Cress wondered, her question marks still remaining over her head.

Now RJ actually did do a spit take.

"Well," Crimson said easily, "when a mommy and a daddy love each other very much-"

"It's nothing!" Ruby blurted out, quickly slapping her hand over Crimson's mouth. "You'll learn about it when you're older!"

" _Yow ahh nuh fun,_ " the elder woman pouted through Ruby's hand.

" _Anyway_ , do guys wanna do something else or just straight to the concert stage?" RJ asked in the hope moving away from the current, socially taboo topic.

"I kinda want to hang out with Rosey and them some more," Cress said, "it's more fun with all of us together."

"Yeah," agreed Ruby, "I think so too." She took her hand away from Crimson's mouth and gobbled up another of her cookies. "It's hard to have fun when you're by yourself."

Crimson's eyes shone mischievously, clearly wanting to make another dirty remark, but a fierce glare from RJ quickly shut that down.

"Remind me why I hang out with you guys again?" the woman asked sardonically.

"Because otherwise you wouldn't be eating _that_ ," Cress supplied, pointing to the Pizza-in-a-cup.

" _Pshaw_! I could swipe one of these things if I really wanted to without anyone noticing!" she boasted, tilting her Cup back and guzzling its remains.

" _That would be illegal,"_ a voice said behind them, nearly causing Crimson to choke. " _Also, why do you all bear such a strong resemblance to Friend Ruby here?"_

The four doppelgängers turned around, finding the source of the new voice immediately; it belonged to a perky looking girl with curly orange hair and freckles, her glassy, green eyes regarding the quartet of Ruby's curiously.

"Penny!" Ruby chirped, springing up from her seat and wrapping the Atlesean girl in a tight hug. "It's good to see you!"

"Sal- _u_ -tations, Ruby!" she replied, giving no indication l that she was bothered by the forceful greeting, "It is good to see you as well."

"Who's she?" Cress whispered, leaning over to RJ.

"Obviously a friend of Ruby's," she shrugged, "beyond that, I couldn't tell you; she doesn't look like anyone from my hometown."

"Sorry you didn't win," Ruby said, finally taking a step back fro the hug, "but you were really cool on your fight with Jaune!" She began pantomiming her version of that fight, "You were all, like, _shoom shoom, wasching!_ And he was like 'Not today!', but then you were all 'Eat my lasers'!"

"I do not remember stating such a thing during that fight…," Penny mused.

"It was _so awesome_!" Ruby continued, "We _have_ to fight each other some time!"

"I will attempt to get permission for that," she resolved, before once again regarding the lookalikes. "Are these more of your sisters?" she asked, "I do not recall you mentioning them before."

"Um, well…." Ruby rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. "That _kind of_ a long story…."

"We're Ruby from a parallel dimension or something," RJ helpfully supplied, "I'm RJ, that's Cress, and the lady with the eyepatch is Crimson; we think she might be from the future."

Ruby jerked her thumb at RJ, "Yeah, what she said."

"Hi!" Cress waved.

Penny squinted her eyes at Cress and RJ. "Hmm...you both appear to be identical to Friend Ruby, how exactly do you differ from her?"

While the three of them explained things to Penny, Crimson sat apart from the group, silently watching the girls interact with Penny. The appearance of the android brought to light a lot of mixed feelings in the time displaced woman, most of them admittedly negative. All the years she spent fighting for her life, of watching her friends get slaughtered...people tended to point to Penny as the cause of the machine uprising, and after more than a decade of hearing the same rhetoric over and over it became hard to disassociate the "girl" from the "legend".

 _God..._ dammit _! And I was having such a good time, too…._ She reached for her flask, groaning when she discovered it was still empty. _Yeah, that figures._ Deprived of her alcohol, she focused on little Cress, who was in the middle of explaining her story to Penny.

"...so then, after I left the Doggy store, I sorta just wandered around the city for a while, just kicking this pebble down the road, kinda depressed that there wasn't a way for me to get back home. Then I sorta ran across this guy with bear ears stealing some lady's purse…"

She chuckled as she listening to the living weapon's somewhat juvenile way she exposited. It was refreshing to hear, and it reminded her of a time back before That Day, when she was still young. There wasn't a day where she didn't wish that she could have it all back, to once again bask in a single _iota_ of the innocence she'd lost.

"' _We're doing this because we have to'_ ," she recited as Penny said something that the others thought was funny, recalling the words the Commander spoke when calling for volunteers for what, at the time, looked like a suicide mission, "' _because if we don't, we may not have a future to look forward to anymore.'_ " She sighed, "You'd kick my ass if you found out I'd shirked my mission, wouldn't you, Commander?"

"So what else can you do?" RJ asked excitedly, "Can you interface with other technology? Do you have a flight mode? Ooh! _Please_ tell me you have a powered up battle mode?"

Penny shook her head. "I do not. My father told me that such upgrades were unnecessary," she explained, "and would defeat the purpose I was created for."

"And what purpose is that?" Cress wondered.

Penny tapped her chin in thought. "You know," she said, "I have never thought to ask. Perhaps I should inquire about that when I ask for permission to fight Friend Ruby." She nodded resolutely, "Yes, I think that is the best course of action. I will go do that now."

"Aw, do you have to?" Ruby asked, "You just got here!"

"Ab-so- _lutely_! The sooner I ask, the sooner we can have out match!" Then her face turned sheepish, "And I may have _possibly_ given my bodyguards 'the slip' to come see you…"

"Oh yeah, right…."

"Anyway," Penny said, "it was a _pleasure_ meeting your doubles, even the stoic one who doesn't talk." She began heading towards a pair of Atlas soldiers who looked like they were asking people questions, shouting back "I will contact you with the answer soon!"

"I'll be waiting!" Ruby called, waving goodbye with Cress and RJ.

"She's really something, isn't she?" Crimson exhaled, sounding subdued.

"Yup!" Cress nodded, "She's pretty cool for a homunculus."

"A homo-what?" asked Ruby, little question marks floating over her head.

" _Homunculus_ ," the living weapon repeated, "that's what you call an artificial being, right?"

"I've never heard that word before," Crimson stated, "and I'm the oldest one here. But anyway, I think we should go meet up with Sister's group."

"Really?" Ruby cocked her head to the side confusion, "You don't wanna try some Pancakes-on-a-stick or something?" She pointed down the way, "The stand's right over there."

Crimson chuckled. "As tempting as that is...there's actually something I just remembered I need to do." She stood up and tossed the empty remains of her Cup into a nearby trash can. "And besides, we all still need baths. Except for me, of course, what with that little _stunt_ you guys pulled before!" She glared playfully at her doppelgängers.

After a moment they all burst in giggles, laughing the event off goodnaturedly.

Then Crimson dropped her mirth and became stone cold serious once again. "But seriously, you guys should probably sleep with one eye open tonight," she warned them darkly.

This cause Ruby and Cress to hide behind RJ, who looked like she'd just seen the Devil or something equally as terrifying.

"OK then!" And just like that, the cyclopean woman's mood switches back to cheerful. "To the stage!"

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

When finally Cinder returned she found Emerald slumped over one of the empty Dust crates, looking more haggard than she remembered seeing the verdant thief in quite some time.

"Cinder, you're back…!" she called tiredly.

The former Huntress strutted over to her subordinate, shaking her head pityingly. "Is _one child_ really beyond your abilities, my dear?" she asked.

The thief looked up, revealing several new bags under her eyes.

"I don't know _how_ you do it, but that girl just _does not stop moving_! Seriously, she's just been zipping around the place all morning, it's all I could do to keep up with her!" she griped. "And she doesn't shut up, either! It was constantly 'What is this strange device?', 'How does this contraption function?', 'When will _Mhastina_ return?', and about twenty other questions I can't be bothered to remember, _on repeat_!" She let out a ragged breath, "Now I know why Roman got divorced…."

"He was never married," Cinder halfheartedly pointed out, looking around the warehouse. "Where is our little newcomer, by the way?"

"She's around here somewhere…." Emerald gestured around the room lazily, "I gave her an illusion to chase around- butterflies or something, I don't remember… -just so I could have a minute to catch my freaking breath."

Cinder gently rubbed Emerald's hair. "Go get some rest, I'll tend to our guest now."

Emerald smiled gratefully, and was just about to thank her mentor when Mercury kicked the door open, casually sauntering up to the pair and tossing a silver hat and dark sunglasses behind him.

"S'up, ladies!" he said. He tossed a small brown bag to Emerald (who didn't bother trying to catch it), "Here's that pretzel I promised. ...Well, _half_ a pretzel; I sorta got hungry on the way back. By the way, where's Pipsqueak 2.0?"

"I was under the impression that you were supposed to remain out of sight for the time being," Cinder said to him, folding her arms in an imposing manner, "What were you doing?"

"Uh, testing my legs out," he answered, "gotta make sure they're nice and ready for the big day tomorrow." He snapped his fingers, "Oh yeah, and Em told me before she had something to say to you!"

" _You asshole…,_ " the green haired thief growled under her breath.

"What was it she wanted to tell me, _Mercury_?" she asked, wisps of flame dancing about her hand.

Mercury gulped.

"Um...sh-she w-wanted to tell you that our Pipsqueak i-isn't the only one that showed up!" he stammered, "There's at least five others aside from the original, plus an older chick who might have been a relative, I couldn't really tell." He paused. "...That's not going to be a problem for us, is it?"

For a moment Cinder said nothing, merely letting the young assassin's eyes linger on the licking flames as she pondered the information he gave.

"I don't believe they will pose much of a problem," she decided, dismissing the flames. "If they're anything like the Ruby Rose I'm familiar with, then the only thing to be concerned about is how well they'll follow the bait I set out."

" _Mhastina_ , you have finally returned!" The girl suddenly popped out from behind a stack of boxes and rav over to Cinder, latching her arms around the woman's waist. "I had such a wonderful time with Miss Emerald, but I am glad that you are back now. Were you able to accomplish your errand?"

"I have," she said, kneeling down and patting the girl on the head, "and I think my surprise for tomorrow should be even more interesting than I originally planned." She turned to to her subordinates, "You're both dismissed, be ready for tomorrow.

"It'll be a climax _no one_ will forget…!"

 _to be continued..._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _OK then, just one more chapter before we get back to the main plot!_

 _So, Crimson seems to have had an epiphany, hasn't she? Again, it wasn't really in the overall plan for that to happen, but unlike all the other times that's happened in this story, I did have_ some _forethought about it before I took pen to paper, so to speak._

 _And we even got one more scene with the baddies! This might be the last time I get to focus on them like this, so enjoy it while you can! (And yes, I'll reveal the final OC soon, so y'all won't have to wait much longer?)_

 _Anywho, next time it'll be the entire group together!_


	19. Winding down?

_Alright guys, one more bit of harmless fun before we get back to the main plot. I'm planning to reach the conclusion of this little tale in 10 chapters or so, but that's only a rough estimate, so don't read too much into it. (I've still got a bunch of other ideas that I want to try my hand at, but I don't want to abandon this one before it's truly finished...)_

 _Anyway, let's get to the fun, OK?_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"Hey guys, we're back!" Ruby called as she and the other copies of her returned to Team RWBY's dorm room, "Anything happen while we were gone?"

Weiss shook her head, "Not really, it's actually been pretty boring since you guys left." She had the R:TG rulebook open on her lap while typing notes on her Scroll, "OK, so playing Vale grants a bonus to any Grimm cards..."

"She's had her nose in that book ever since you all left," Blake explained, "As someone who likes to read a lot, it's kind of disturbing how she hasn't really put that book down all afternoon."

Weiss read a passage from the massive tome under her breath, occasionally looking over to her Scroll as she typed.

"She reminds me of Katrin when midterms roll around," RJ mused, shivering briefly at the memory. After recovering from her "war flashbacks", she looked around the room, noticing a glaring omission. "Where'd Yang go?"

"She's at the infirmary," the Faunus explained, scooting over as Rosey climbed next to her on her bunk, "She hasn't gotten her arm checked out since yesterday, so I suggested she get it treated to help speed up the healing. Besides, she was starting to get a bit stir crazy what with Weiss and her obsessive studying."

"Well, _at least_ we'll have some relative quiet for a while," Rubin said. She turned to Ruby, "Where do you keep you _towels_?"

"In the bottom drawer," Ruby said, pointing to the dresser, "Weiss brought a bunch with her, so take whichever."

"Taking a shower?" Cress asked.

Rubin nodded. "I feel like I have a second skin made of _sweat_ , and it feels _disgusting_!" she explained, "So yes, I am. And if anyone has a _problem_ with that, I'll _gladly_ fight them for the right to go first."

"Please, go right ahead, Miss Schnee," allowed Sister, "the rest of us will make do with showers by the arena."

"Do the rest of us have something to change into afterwards?" RJ asked quickly, which caused Rubin to pause right before she grabbed the the bathroom door, "'cause I don't wanna have to walk back here in a towel _or_ in my stanky clothes for that matter. And I don't know about the rest of you guys, but bathrooms and my clothes apparently have an 'interesting' relationship now."

Rubin quickly turned and snapped her fingers at Weiss. "Hey, Rose! Give me one of your bathrobe-"

Weiss simply held up a finger in the "give me a minute" gesture, not looking up from the book.

"Don't _ignore_ me!" the débutante scoffed, "I _told_ you to-!"

" _I'll_ get it for you," Blake offered, and then addressed the other Ruby's, "They have robes and washing machines there, so you don't have to worry not having clean clothes."

"See, RJ?" Ruby pat the teenager on the back. "Nothing to worry about!"

"Hurry it up, _Belladonna_!" Rubin barked, "I'm not getting any _cleaner_ just _standing_ here, you know?"

"Hey guys," Cress wondered, "where'd Crimson go?"

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Ozpin sat at his desk, going over the reports of everything that happened during the Vytal Featival so far. Specifically, the whole fiasco that was Yang Xiao-Long's brief arrest and the scandal that revolved around it. It still weighed heavily on his mind even though it was resolved, like there was something else to it that he just couldn't put his finger on.

He sighed, taking a sip of his coffee. He envied Qrow, in a manner of speaking, for his ability to lose himself in a bottle of schnapps; not only did Ozpin have a remarkably high alcohol tolerance, but no matter how much he tried his mind stubbornly refused to let go of reason, and would continue to work at a problem until either it was solved or deemed impossible. While he usually pushed the process in his shallow subconscious, thus enabling him to reasonably multi-task, he could never shut it off completely.

He imagine this was true for humanity as a whole, though everyone else seemed more adept at distracting themselves when they wanted to.

"Maybe there isn't a connection…," he mused, switching to another file, this one a transcript of James' interrogation of Roman Torchwick. The infamous thief was unashamedly flippant throughout the session, being either sarcastic or vague with very little sincerity when he chose to be neither.

His Scroll buzzed, signaling an incoming call from Glynda.

"Yes?" he said as the call connected.

 _#There's woman here to see you; she says that she is Ruby Rose from the future.#_

While the claim alone was certainly enough to raise his eyebrow, what caught Ozpin's attention was the note of uncertainty in his colleague's voice as she told him.

"Did she give any sort of proof to support her claim?" he asked.

 _#I'm only holding them for a friend, I swe-!#_ she blurted out before stopping herself and clearing her throat. _#I mean yes, she has. Shall I send her up to you?#_

"Please do." He ended the call and poured himself a fresh mug of coffee, plus one for his guest.

A few minutes later the elevator doors opened, revealing his visitor; while definitely than the girl he'd invited to the School she still bore an uncanny resemblance to her apparent namesake. Aside from her state of dress (which looked like it was modeled after Vacuan sensibilities) her most notable feature was the thick eyepatch she wore over her left eye.

"S'up Oz!" she said, waving to the headmaster as she made her way into the room, "Man, this place is a lot smaller than I remembered!"

"Ruby Rose, I presume?"

"In the flesh!" she nodded, "Though you've probably seen a lot more if me recently."

"Well, that's one way of putting it," he smirked. He pressed a button on his desk and a chair popped up from the floor, which he offered to her.

"Blame Yang," the woman said as she sat down, "she ends up being a bad influence on me." He smiled knowingly and slid the prepared coffee over to "Ruby", who eyes it tentatively. "Got any booze?" she asked, looking up hopefully.

"I'm afraid not, Miss Rose. I'm not a very big drinker, so I don't keep any on hand."

"Damn...I was hoping I could _finally_ get a top up…." She let out a long sigh and leaned forward so her elbows were resting on the desk, "In that case, let's get down to business."

"And what business would that be?" he asked.

"Saving future," she answered in a dead serious tone, "Not that I'm sure it'll even matter now, but nothing ventured, right?"

"I suppose that will depend on what your plan is."

"The plan is to tell you my story, and then come up with an _actual_ plan once that's done." She snatched up the coffee mug and downed the entire thing in one gulp. "Ugh, should've asked for sugar…. Anyway, I'm my time, the Robots have almost driven humanity to the brink of extinction…."

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"That wasn't so bad," commented RJ as she wrapped herself up in one of Beacon bathrobes, her hair wrapped in a towel, "Aside from the robes, it's kinda like the showers at my school."

"Oh?" Cress stuck her head out of the shower stall she was using, "Whats your school like?"

RJ thought for a moment, wondering how she would answer the question; she'd noticed that the way of life on Remnant was vastly different from Earth, and as such a lot of Earth terms probably wouldn't even mean anything here. It reminded her of the anime Chris liked to watch, where some random Joe got transported to a fantasy world and everything was completely different, even though everyone there still spoke English...or maybe Star Trek was a better comparison, given the high level of technology in Remnant.

Regardless, she figured she had to give it her best shot.

"Well, it's not _nearly_ as big as this place is, for starters," she explained, "though it's still pretty big compared to other schools; there's the main building for classrooms, the faculty, and the cafeteria. The gym's in a smaller building next to the main one, and behind there are a bunch of fields for people who play sports to practice on."

"And what do you learn there?" Ruby asked.

RJ shrugged, "Compared to this place, mostly academic stuff: math, language arts, science, music, sports...there's a fencing club, but that's only Katrin and a few other people, and they don't compete in tournaments or anything." She chuckled, "Barb takes Home Ec, but she's so bad at it that one time she _actually_ burned water!"

"*snerk!*" Ruby snorted, "That totally sounds like Yang!"

"Ember too!" Cress joined in, "She can't cook for beans!" Then she tilted her head, "Though she can still make beans perfectly fine for some reason…."

"Y-you guys are l-lucky…," Rosey piped up; she and Sister were sharing a stall, the older girl helping her wash thoroughly.

Needless to say, it was a rather time consuming task.

" _You're_ the lucky one," said RJ, "you don't have to worry about classes, or homework, or cliques, or having go to bed early because you have a test the next day…."

"I wish I d-did," the young Faunus dropped, "F-Faunus aren't all-llowed t-to attend school or g-go to libraries, s-so…."

This understandably brought the mood down.

"Th-that's why I l-like it here," she continued, "People and Faunus have the s-same rights, a-and there isn't any d-discrimination!"

"Well…." Ruby rubbed the back of her head.

"There's still a rather vocal portion of humanity that treats the Faunus poorly," Sister explained, rinsing the shampoo from Rosey's hair, "even from my world, and it isn't helped by the fact that the White Fang do little to actually disprove many of the prejudices people have."

RJ unwrapped her hair and threw the towel on a wrack. "Same for mine," she said. "We don't have Grimm to worry about, and Humans are the only sentient life in the planet, so we tend to invent reasons to hate each other, sometimes starting wars because of it. Personally, I'd trade that for the threat of Grimm attacks if it meant humanity didn't fight with itself anymore."

"That is a very appealing ideal, Miss Jones," agreed Sister, "but I feel it's better to set an example for others to look up to rather than simply wishing for change to happen."

"Yeah, I guess you have a point…."

"This is getting too depressing!" Cress declared, stepping out of the shower, "Can we talk about something not gloomy, please? I don't like talking about gloomy things."

"Yeah, that sounds like s good idea," Ruby said, also finished with her shower and was festering her robe up. She looked over at Rosey, "So how's your reading coming along?"

"It's g-good," she answered, "I st-still have trouble w-with big words, b-but Blake says I'm learning r-really fast!"

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"Ugh, come on already, _Weissberg_!" Yang moaned, trying to provoke a reaction from the heiress; they were playing Remnant: The Game again, same teams, and it was currently Weiss's turn, "Make a freaking move, preferably sometime this century!"

She looked down at the board, then back at her cards, then back at the board, then back to her cards.

Then she picked up her Scroll and studied the notes she'd made.

"Hurry _up_ , Weiss!" Ruby whined, "If you take any longer, Professor Goodwitch is gonna enforce curfew!"

"I'm planning my next move!" she snapped. "I think I finally have a good grasp on how this infuriating game works…." She studied her cards one more time, nodding resolutely. "Alright 'Rosean Alliance', prepare to face the wrath of the Holy Schnee Empire!"

"I can't believe that's what she called our team…," Yang grumbled under her breath, shaking her head.

"First, I'll move my Fearless Soldiers _here_ ," she declared, sliding some of her Atlas pieces closer to Vacuo, "and I'll play _this_!" She slammed a card down that read "Overclocked", with a picture of a pressure gauge with the needle all the way in the red. "Now my troops get an attack bonus for my next three turns, and _this_ -" She played another card. "-let's me use my laser targeting software to bypass your defenses for a higher chance of getting a critical hit!" She then grabbed the dice and have them a solid toss, rolling a "6" and a "4". "Hah! Prepare for an _extremely_ hostile takeover, _Vacuo_!"

"Hmm...not bad, not bad," RJ praised, nodded her respect to the heiress. " _However_ …," she said, her face morphing into a smug grin, "you're nothing if not predictable." She took a card from her hand and showed it to Weiss, "'Sand Cloud'; you lose a turn as your robots have to require their targets. And I'll play 'Sand in Bad Places', which…." She grabbed and rolled the dice, getting two 1's. "Oh wow, it looks like you lose _another_ turn; lucky you!" Then she tapped Weiss's 'Overclocked' card, "By the way, you need to roll an 8 or higher on your third turn or else you'll get a handicap for the rest of the game.

If Weiss's could unhinge itself, it would have been on the floor right now.

Gingerly, she picked up the dice rolled them.

"Ooh, tough luck!" RJ mock consoled as the dice read a collective "5", "Looks like your forces overheat and lose their bonus. Incidentally, your attack doesn't do diddly squat to me." She nodded at Ruby, "Take her down, Ruby!"

"Yes sir!" she saluted and rolled the dice, getting an 11. "Sorry Weiss, but my huntsmen take out a huge chunk of your Fearless Soldiers." She knocked over some of Weiss's game pieces.

"Don't worry," RJ said, condescendingly patting Weiss on the head as she sputtered in shock, "if you don't give up, then maybe one day you can actually compete with the _big_ girls."

Weiss growled and threw her cards down. "Grah! I hate this stupid game!" she screamed, "It's absolutely _impossible_ to win!"

"Not with _that_ attitude," RJ scoffed.

Weiss just glared at the sassy teenager, unable to find the words to properly express her mounting frustration at her. Eventually she just stomped over to her bunk and huffily crawled under the covers, rolling over to face the wall. "Good night!"

"Um, you're still in your clothes, Weiss," Ruby helpfully pointed out. "Aren't you gonna change-"

" _I'll do it later!_ " she snapped.

"Well, Weiss is out," Yang stated, gathering up the heiress's cards, "You two are the victors in that Skirmish, how do you want to divide the spoiled of war?"

"Actually, can I have a turn?" Cress asked; she was reading over Blake's shoulder as Rosey read another _X-Ray and Vav_ comic, petting Zwei. (Rubin was still in the bathroom, "taking care of her _essential_ hygiene needs that have been _neglected_ for far too long!", in her own words.)

Ruby nodded. "Yeah, I don't see what not."

"It's a little complicated at first," RJ explained, "but once you get the hang of it it's pretty fun. ...unless you're a sore loser _noob_ like some people!"

The jab was directed at Weiss, who just flipped RJ the bird.

"I think you and me should swap beds for tonight...," Ruby advised her "Vacuan" ally.

"Hey, let me get in on this action!" Crimson announced, bursting into the room suddenly, "I've been seriously itching to get some sweet payback at my sister on this game!"

"Where were you all this time?" RJ asked.

"Doing grownup stuff," the older woman answered enigmatically. "But that's not important right now, I'm too fired up to conquer Remnant!"

"But there's only four Kingdoms," Ruby once again pointed out helpfully, "and Cress just took the open spot."

"Not a problem, I'll just fill in for you!" Crimson explained, hip checking the young Huntress ("Wagh!") out of the way and sitting in her spot. "Alright, let's do this thing!"

"Don't act so cocky, Older Little Sis!" Yang countered, "You may be older now, but you'll never defeat the R:TG Dragon of Patch Island at her own game!"

 _to be continued…._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _And there you have it, the end of a day of fun and goofing around by all the Ruby OCs! I didn't get nearly as many suggestions for the girls to do as I was hoping for, but I had a ton of fun writing these antics nonetheless. (Thanks again to Greeneagle120 and Michael7123 for giving me good material to work with!) _

_And as you may have noticed, I may have snuck a little plot into Crimson's segment. Well...not so much "plot" as "covering up a future plot hole" in the strictest sense._

 _Anyway, next time it's the lead up to the climactic final battle, so get ready for...well, setup, but after that it's the fighting, so stay tuned!_


	20. Tick, tick, tick

_Welcome back, everyone! We had a little bit a breather for the last few chapters (though there's still plenty of scenes that still tie in), but now we're going back into things full swing!_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"I can't believe _Cress_ of all people won last night!" Yang said as she, Ruby, Crimson, RJ and Cress made their way to the Vytal Festival to watch the finale parade next day.

"Ditto," Crimson said, "I mean- no offense by the way, Cress- she always struck me as the mental runt of the litter, so to speak- Ow!" She rubbed her ear where RJ flicked her.

"You're just mad 'cause you lost," the teenager reminded the warrior woman, "I lost too, and you don't hear me whining about it!"

"I don't know why Weiss has such a hard time with that game," commented Cress, nonplussed, "It was actually pretty easy. In fact, I think Weiss could have actually won if she didn't quit."

" _I_ wanted to play...," Ruby pouted.

Yang wrapped her good right around her sister's shoulders and pulled her into a hug. "How about we have a game later, just us sisters?" the blond suggested.

"Sounds good," Ruby nodded, "so long as _someone_ -" She glared pointedly at Crimson. "-doesn't interfere!"

"Hey," she protested, "I have _literally_ been waiting years to play Yang in that game! And not to get too maudlin, but I'm never going to get the chance to do that in my own time anymore!" She reached for her flask, and then scoffed when she realized it was still empty. "OK, I need to go top up...," she announced, "I'm heading over to the Crow Bar." She paused, as if she were waiting for one of them to stop her.

"None of us are Weiss," Yang explained, "Go right ahead!"

Permission given, she smiled and headed off to get her long overdue drink, waving as she melted into the crowd.

"Hey, did she seem a bit...'off' to anyone else?" Ruby asked, "I mean, more so than normal."

"Nope!" Cress said, popping the "P", "She seemed pretty normal to me."

RJ shrugged, "Same, though I may have a biased opinion on her sanity."

Ruby looked back over where Crimson disappeared, wondering what was going through her "future" self's mind. "Huh, maybe I'm imagining things..."

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Elsewhere, the other half of Team RWBY and the rest of Ruby's doppelgängers were further up the road, having already found an optimal spot to watch the parade from.

"This is going to be _fantastic_!" Weiss declared, raising her arms to the sky, " _Months_ of meticulous planning, of committees and subcommittees, and now, at long last, we get to see the culmination of all those tireless efforts-!"

"You're just excited that the centerpiece is an SDC float," Blake interrupted, Rosey nodding in support.

"So what if I am?" Weiss retorted, not even bothering to deny the accusation, "Ironwood is proud of it, and I dare say it's about time my family's company gets remembered for something positive for a change!"

"A-are they not?" Rosey wondered.

Weiss shook her head, "Unfortunately the SDC doesn't have a history of making the best business decisions, not to mention all the rumors about them exploiting Faunus labor-"

"That have been proven beyond a doubt," Blake said.

"- _rumors!_...haven't been good for public opinion."

"Oh...O-OK, I think?"

"It's _terrible_!" Rubin moaned, "I mean, it's _not_ like they've done anything _illegal_ ; so what if some of the _animals_ complain about 'unsatisfactory working conditions'? They should be grateful we _even_ bother to let them work at all!"

Sister frowned. "I believe you're missing the point, Miss Schnee," she admonished, "And please don't say things like that so loud; you might accidentally incite with comments like that."

''Tch, _whatever_!" Rubin huffed, "Doesn't make it any _less_ true..."

"I thought you were trying to cut back on your 'hate the Faunus' thing?" Weiss asked.

Rubin bristled, giving Weiss the cold shoulder. "Just _because_ I've developed a tolerance to those in present company, doesn't mean I _feel_ any differently about the _Faunus_ as a whole." She tapped her foot impatiently, "So when's this dumb _parade_ supposed start, anyway?"

Blake sighed, shaking her head at the débutante's unashamedly hostile attitude towards the Faunus. She'd thought the girl had changed her attitude after her sparring session with Crimson and Sister, she certainly _seemed_ to make more of an effort to be less rude to herself and Rosey at any rate, but apparently it wasn't meant to last.

 _I guess not every Schnee can be like Weiss...,_ she mused wistfully.

"It should begin at noon," Sister explained, checking the time on her Scroll, "which is only a few minutes away."

Rosey fidgeted excitedly next to Blake, compulsively tugging on her hood. "I'm s-so exc-cited, I've n-never been to a p-parade before!"

"Do they not have parades in your Remnant?" Blake asked.

"N-no, th-they do," the young Faunus shook her head, "it's j-just that us F-Faunus don't usually c-care about them." Her eyes took on a faraway look, "But s-sometimes, m-me and Weiss would sneak into the c-city during the holidays and s-such and w-watch everything from the rooftops. The f-floats were always so c-cool, a-and the music was r-really b-beautiful...!" She sighed wistfully.

Rubin merely huffed, her foot beating an impatient tattoo on the ground. "Bully for you; I _guess_ there is something to be said about simple minds after all."

Rosey shrank behind Blake once again.

"You really shouldn't be so antagonistic to Rosey, Miss Schnee," Sister scolded.

" _Hmph!_ "

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Crimson finally made it to the small pub by the docks, trudging up to the bar and unceremoniously plopping down on one of the stools. She waved the mustachioed bartender over, "Do me a favor and will something up for me, will ya?" She held out her flask to him.

"No problem," he nodded, taking the proffered flask. "You have anything particular in mind?"

She shrugged. "Surprise me, just make sure it's something strong."

"Whatever you say ma'am." He selected an old looking bottle from the shelf behind him and popped the cork off, pouring its contents into the flask. "You know, a man told me something similar just yesterday."

"Really?"

"Mmhmm! Handed me his flask, and when I asked what he wa yes he said for me pick. Didn't mention anything about wanting it strong or not, so I gave him the most popular thing I have on tap. If he ever comes back for his flask, I hope he appreciates that I didn't give him the expensive stuff and charge him for it."

"Huh, no kidding." She leaned on the bar, scanning the wall of alcohol. She sighed, thinking about how people back in her time would kill to get their hands on even a third of all the booze here. Hell, _she_ would kill for a drop, depending on the mood she was in at the time.

And as she pondered this, something the barkeep said finally registered with her.

"Why would someone just leave a flask?" she asked the bartender, who shrugged.

"Couldn't say; the guy just told me to hold onto it and then hobbled away." He reached under the bar and placed the flask in question on top. "Hasn't come back yet, but then again it's only been a day." He made to slide Crimson's flask back to her, pausing for a moment. "Is it me, or do you and that guy yesterday shop at the same stores?"

Crimson glanced between the two vessels for a few seconds before her eyes went wide; aside from Her's having many, many dents and scratches on it (and she had a sneaking suspicion she knew who it belonged to) both flasks looked incredibly identical to each other, even down to the tiny bird pin on the side.

Her mind then went back to when she first found her flask, just sitting in the ruins of a building by the waterfront. She'd just finished up a reconnaissance mission in the area with Weiss and was scouring the area for anything of worth when she's kicked some rubble over and found it, still miraculously full. At first shed wondered why it was there, since it was clear it had been there for years, but had dismissed the answer as irrelevant after taking a hearty swig from it and letting inebriation set in.

 _Then if this is here_ now, she thought, _then that means…._

"I gotta go," she said, grabbing both bottles and attaching them to her belt, calling out "Send the bill to Beacon Academy!" as she raced back out into the streets. After taking a moment to confirm that this was indeed the same place she remembered- it was -she headed back towards the parade route, pulling out the Scroll Ozpin gave her and making a call. "Hey, Ozpin, remember yesterday when I wasn't sure if my being here would make a difference? Yeah, well, that just changed."

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Everything was so loud, not at all like the city she remembered that surrounded the College; it was noisy in its own right, but more of a steady din occasionally punctuated by a town crier or something, nothing like the cacophony that surrounded her now. Everyone was all seemed to be talking at once, vendors were calling out their wares, children were crying, and just ahead of here were the worst mineral duo she'd ever heard, their voices amplified by the black cepters they were shouting into.

If it were any other circumstance, she would have been entrance by all the strange magics on display around her (instead of using crystal balls, people held glossy tablets up to their heads to speak with each other! At least, she assumed that was the case the way they neglected the others they were with), but her _Mhastina_ had given her a mission, and she couldn't allow herself to be distracted by the wonders of this alien place.

" _You are to wait for the procession to start before you act", that is what Mhastina told me,_ she reminded herself. _I will remain vigilant, Mhastina! You will see!_

A few minutes later the minstrels stopped their performance and the crowd began to cheer, gesturing down the road. She pushed through the throng of people until she reached a rope that had been set up along the road, leaning over it to get s better view of what caused the rise in excitement. Sure enough, she could just make out some kind of large wagon carrying colorful statues of what looked to be warriors of some kind, with more wagons following behind it.

 _It has started!_ she realized, _I must take my position!_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _And here it is, the beginning of the climax! Strap yourselves in, folks, this next fight is going to be the most involved one yet!_

 _Anyway, apologies for the greater than normal dry spell between this chapter and the last, the long and short of it is that relatively minor but very specific computer problems prevented me from being as productive as I could be, so I've had to make do with using my mobile devices as my primary writing medium. Hopefully I'll be able to get into a more steady rhythm of writing up and posting new chapters, but it might be longer between them as a result._

 _As for what's happening in the story itself, I'm going to begging the process of wrapping things up after this next segment. (All the OCs who've had any major focus are going to get some resolution over the course of the next few chapters.)_

 _And fear not, the final OC will properly revealed as well, though I don't know if it'll be during the big fight or after it, we'll see how things pan out._

 _Oh, and one last thing: RWBY CHIBIS is mother effing adorabiggle, go check it out as soon as you can!_

 _Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go plan out the fight scene..._


	21. Boom

_OK, here's the beginning of the climax!_

 ** _(Warning: brief, strong language)_**

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

The Parade was going smoothly, with the crowd loving every new float that crawled past; from Vale's miniature Beacon Academy float, to Mistral's majestic recreation of its ancient ruins, to Vacuo's acrobatics platform (complete with Faunus performers pulling off daring feats), to even Atlas's float, which was only a squad of Knights running drills and an oddly painted Paladin behind them was applauded, probably due to the fact that the Knights would occasionally waved to the crowd. Leading the floats along were ensemble marching bands made up of humans and Faunus of all kind, most of whom were uniformless; only the bands that represented the Schools wore matching outfits, save for the one from Vacuo.

Between the unforgettable tournament (for one reason or another), the lavish dances that happened at sunset, all the energetic music that was performed throughout the event, and now the exquisite parade to cap everything off (not to mention all the delicious food that was consumed) one could not ask for a better Vytal Festival, especially considering it was the event's Jubilee anniversary.

Everyone was so enamoured with the parade and its festivities that they hardly paid attention as a petite figure in baggy clothes and a red cape leaped onto the Vacuan float and knelt in the middle, placing something on the platform and began muttering under her breath.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Crimson didn't have any trouble locating her younger self once she reached the parade route, though navigating the densely packed crowds to get to them proved to be more of a challenge. (Though "annoyance" was probably more accurate, considering no one was actively trying to get in her way.) the parade had already begun, and her sister and younger doppelgängers were all focused on the acrobatics display from Vacuo that was currently passing by.

"Guys!" she called once she was only a few metres away.

Yang was the first of the group to respond. "Hey Older Little Sis!" she called back, "What took you so long?"

"Did you get your booze?" RJ asked.

Crimson waved dismissively, "That's not important right now; something big just came up and I need to head back to Beacon."

"But the parade just started!" Cress pointed out, "If you leave now you're gonna miss it."

The older doppelgänger shrugged. "Thems the breaks, kid. Trust me, I'd _much_ rather hang around here than deals with what's waiting for me." She unhooked a familiar looking flask from her belt and tossed it to Ruby, who fumbled with it briefly before catching it. "If you run into Uncle Qrow, tell him that's on Beacon this time."

And with that the warrior woman headed back into the crowd, soon disappearing from sight.

During the whole exchange Ruby remained quiet, studying her older self. She couldn't put her finger on it but there was something strangely off about how she was acting, both before and just now. She didn't know if it was because Crimson really was her from the future or not, all she knew for sure was that she couldn't shake the sense that Crimson wasn't telling them something important.

"I'm going back too," she declared, hooking the flask to her belt, "I think Crimson might be about to do something dangerous."

This got the others' attention, especially Yang's; while she sometimes had trouble figuring out her "older little sis", she could tell right away that Ruby was in "serious mode" right now. "Should we all go back?" she asked.

Ruby shook her head, "You guys should go find everyone else and let them know what's up."

"Um...is something going on that I should be worried about?" asked RJ, visibly nervous.

Ruby wanted to give the girl some but of comfort, since she was pretty much like a fish in a pool of sharks, but….

"I don't know," the crimsonette answered honestly, "but whatever the case, I think it would be better if all of us were together." She began to walk after Crimson, then paused and turned around. "Don't worry, I'll be back as soon as I can," she assured everyone before resuming her trek.

For a moment the remaining girls just stared after the young team leader, then Cress asked "So...are we gonna find everyone else or what?"

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"Crimson, wait up!" Ruby called as she ran after her future self, the woman striding purposefully in the direction of the airship docks. "Where are you going?"

Without breaking her stride or even looking back, she said "Beacon Academy. You should go back to your friends."

"But _why_ are you going back?" the young girl pressed, "What's so important?"

Crimson briefly glanced back. "It's better the less you know. Seriously, go back and look after the other You's, you'll do more good there than with me."

Ruby was undeterred, and zipped in front of the older woman, blocking her path.

"There's something you're not telling me," she accused, "and whatever it is, I can't shake the feeling that it's something bad, and that you're about to do something because of that you're gonna regret." She'd been holding her arms out to her sides, though now she let them fall, her previously stony face softening. "I may have had a pretty easy life so far, and I may only be fifteen, but if there's a chance I can make whatever you're about to do turn out OK, I want to take it."

Crimson stared at her younger self; apart from still having both her eyes, Ruby's face still held a sense of youthfulness to it that almost seemed foreign to the battle hardened Crimson. Crimson was sure she was giving Ruby the most intimidating, penetrating stare she could muster, but the girl merely stated back with a determination and an unwavering resolve that belied her youth.

That, and a tiny quivering of her silver orbs rapidly eroded Crimson's resolve.

 _It's_ so weird _being on the other side of that_ , she thought, mentally sighing.

"...I can kill a Goliath with my bear hands, but _you_ are the more dangerous individual right now," she said, her own expression softening slightly.

Ruby made a motion that could be taken as "And…?".

"So the short version is that if I don't get to the school and stop something bad from happening then the future, _my future_ , is gonna become a reality here," she explained. "And it has to be _only me_ that goes; except for Ozpin, I'm probably the most powerful person in the world, and if anyone else is with me when I do this, it's almost certain that they'll die."

Before Ruby could retort, the sounds of commotion reached the ears of the two crimsonettes, and it didn't take either long to realize that it _wasn't_ the sounds of jubilation that were prevalent before.

"Oh _fuck_ ," Crimson swore as explosions started peppering the panicked din, immediately pushing past Ruby. "You still wanna come with?" she asked over her shoulder.

"Uh huh-"

"Then hold on tight." Crimson reached behind her and grabbed Ruby, who squeaked as she was propped up on Crimson's back. (She quickly wrapped her arms around Crimson's neck.) "I'll give you the short version of this on the way."

And with that she activated her Semblance, sprinting off towards Beacon as fast as she possibly could.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Neo raised an eyebrow as she watched a tower of vines began to rise from one of the floats in the parade, all the patrons going from calm yet eagerly excited to frantic panic in a matter of seconds.

So _that_ was what she meant by "impossible to miss", she realized, both impressed and slightly fearful at the display.

It also dawned on her that Cinder's claim about her new pawn's powers night just be completely valid. She seen some impressive displays of power and plenty of unique abilities in her life, but nothing quite on a scale as large as _this_ ; it was almost like watching one of the legends of old come online before her very own, heterochromatic eyes.

Putting her (quite justified) amazement aside for the moment, she headed off towards the Cross Continental Transmit tower to play her part in Cinder's Evil Plan (rvsd.). Cinder had apparently planted a virus of some kind in the network there, she couldn't be bothered to remember what it actually did, and without any way to get onboard one the Atlas airships like the original plan called for it would have to be activated at the source, which frustrated her to no end.

Not that she would have a problem getting up the CCT, far from it; except for maybe Cinder's verdant little puppy dog and Cinder herself, _she_ was the most adept at infiltration (being both short and silent were huge boons in that regard). No, what made her blood boil was that she wasn't going to busy Roman out of jail. Despite his brash demeanor and unwillingness to play along with his (and her, by association) boss, she kind of had a soft spot for the professional their. She couldn't put her finger on why that was, they just sort of clicked whenever they worked together.

But regardless of her slightly selfish reasons for wanting to bring Roman Torchwick back into things, she needed to play her part in the Big Plan first; virus first, then Roman.

Besides, if she was lucky, there might be a few guards she could unalive when she got to the CCT.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"What the hell is that thing?!" Weiss asked staring in shock at the tower if vines that suddenly erupted from one of the floats.

"Well it's _obviously_ not part of the _parade_!" Rubin answered condescendingly, "Hurry up and call our _weapons_ already!"

" _Right!"_ Weiss, Blake and Sister said in unison, all whiping out their Scrolls and punching their coordinates.

"I-is it s-some k-kind of Dust?" Rosey wondered.

"No," Weiss shook her head, " _definitely_ not!"

" _Hey guys!"_ Yang called as she ran up to the second group, Cress and RJ in tow. "We were just coming to find you," she panted, "You wouldn't happen to know everyone suddenly started panic-" Then she noticed the tower of vines. " _Whoa!_ That's a big plant!"

"Indeed it is," Sister confirmed. "Though I'm afraid that's all we know about it at the moment; its apparantly outside all of our experiences."

"You two wouldn't happen to know anything _about_ it, would you?" Rubin asked half seriously to RJ and Cress, who both shook their heads.

"I have theories, but I doubt they'll actually hold up," RJ said, while Cress elected to simply shrug.

At that moment a quartet of lockers thudded behind them, their doors springing open to reveal the girls' weapons.

"Do you _really_ need those?" RJ wondered as Weiss, Rubin, Rosey, Sister and Blake retrieved their respective armaments, gesturing to the monolith, "I mean, all it's doing is swaying a bit."

No sooner had she said that when large buds began sprouting up the vines, with a massive one appearing at the top. They all bloomed into roses a moment later, and all of them sans the one on top angles downward. They fired what looked like seeds which borrowed into the ground on impact, and after a couplel seconds clusters of smaller vines and grew and entwined with each other until they resembled ape like figures.

"...I'll shut up now," the teenager said ashamedly.

"W-wait a minute," Rosey spoke up, looking around worriedly, "w-where's R-Ruby?"

"She ran after Crimson," explained Yang, who shifted Ember Celica into their Gauntlet forms, "She said she'd be back, but now I'm thinking she's safer wherever she is with Crim."

 _to be continued…_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Well, this certainly looks dire, doesn't it? A giant, scary plant appears out of nowhere and spawns minions? A nasty virus that has something to do with the CCT?_

 _My friends, the climactic final battle is about to begin._

 _There's a couple more things to set up before we get to all the fight scenes I have planned, so next chapter will deal with all that. But afterwards...well, let's just say that some of the things that happen_ may _parallel the actual events of Volume 3. Possibly. Maybe. Evil chuckle._

 _In the meantime, check out the adorabiggle RWBY CHIBIS, and give my other ongoing story "Knight of Conquests" a look see._


	22. When the smoke clears

_Alright guys, it's almost time for the big showdown! Let's see who's gonna fight who, shall we?_

 _ **Warning: brief, strong language.**_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Ruby stared breathless at the grandiose chamber that Crimson lead her through; she knew Beacon was a big place, but she never even thought that it could have a basement, let alone one this big.

"What is this place?" she asked in awe.

"This is The Vault," Crimson explained, "Aside from Ozpin and a few others, no one else in the entire world knows this place exists; hell, _I_ didn't know about until Ozzy Boy told me about it earlier."

Ruby nodded, more on instinct than actually acknowledging her older counterpart; it felt ancient, like the ruins her team and JNPR fought Grimm at during the initiation, and it reminded her of the grand castles and strongholds she read about in her books.

Crimson noticed her staring all around the cavernous hall, noting "It's really something, isn't it?"

"Yeah…," she breathed. She would have remained entranced by the Vault indefinitely but a thought suddenly crossed her mind. "So, if this is called 'The Vault', and vaults supposed to keep important things safe...then what's down here that needs protecting?"

By now the two of them had nearly reached the other end of the hall and we're approaching a set of very old looking wooden doors. Without breaking her stride, Crimson reached forward and grabbed the handles on each door and tugged them open.

"This," she said, walking into a dark chamber. Ruby hurried after her, the doors closing with a deep, dull thud a moment later.

At first it was so dark that Ruby couldn't even see her hand, but after a few seconds dim lighting flashed on and her eyes adjusted.

The first thing she noticed- in fact, the only thing in the entire room -was a cluster of machines ( _Probably from Atlas_ , her mind deduced.); various tubes and wires ran from a console to what looked like a coffin with a glass lid. Behind the lid was a woman dress in earthy browns and greens who appeared to be sleeping, with wicked, black veins crawling along her face and exposed midriff. There was a second coffin thing next to the first, though this one was empty.

Ruby reached out and placed a hand on the glass, staring in horror at the veins. "What happened to her?" she asked.

"Ozpin didn't say," Crimson answered. She walked over to Ruby and stood next to her, "but it had to have been something _really_ powerful to do that to a Maiden."

Ruby turned around to Crimson, her eyes wide with shock. "She's a _Maiden?!_ Like one of Four Maidens? Wait, _they're real?_ "

The future Ruby nodded. "The Fall Maiden, to be precise," she said. "Ozpin thinks that someone's going to try to break in here and steal the rest of her powers, and I'm inclined to believe that same person is the one who causes my future to go to shit."

"...so then what was that explosion before?"

"Probably a distraction so they can sneak in here while everyone else is dealing with that." She gestured towards the entrance, "Keep an eye out for me; there's a lot of stuff I need to set up and I don't want to get caught unawares."

"Roger!" she nodded, and headed back for the doors.

She barely got four steps before Crimson quickly chopped at the back if Ruby's neck, knocking her out almost instantly. She caught her younger counterpart before she slumped to the ground and, with her free hand, reached back and yanked the lid of the other coffin open, gently placing Ruby inside.

"Sorry about that, Kiddo," she told the unconscious Ruby, "but you wouldn't even stand a chance against this bitch. Plus, I don't wanna take the chance that I disappear if you get killed." She shut the lid and brought out her Crescent Rose, turning to face the door. "Bring it on, ya _bitch_ ," she declared, "Mama needs to work out some deep seeded psychological issues!"

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"What the hell are these things!?" Yang shouted, punching a hole in one of the vine apes. It stumbled back briefly, then corrected itself, new vines growing rapidly to repair the hole. Yang growled and lunched a flurry of Dust blasts at the creature; after burning for a minute it finally fell over dead. "These aren't like the Grimm at all!"

Weiss, upon noticing the blonde's accident all stroke of genius, immediately switched Myrtenaster to its barrel of red Dust and activated it, slashing at a nearby vine beast. It soon joined it's fellow that Yang slew. "No kidding," she called back, "but red Dust seems to be extremely effective against them."

"Got it!" Yang turned to the next vine beast and have it one good punch to the "head", watching as it quickly got consumed by fire. "Pass that along!"

"OK!" Weiss nodded and turned to look for one of their companions, only to find they weren't anywhere in sight. "W-where'd they go?" she wondered, scanning the area as she made her way to the next creature; the vine tower looked farther away now, and the hoards of creatures weren't as dense as she remembered them being at first. "Um, that _might_ be a problem."

Yang punched another creature's "head" before following it up with a body shot that set it on fire. "Why's that?" she asked.

"Because we got separated!" A vine beast aimed a double handed smash at her, but she used a glyph to leap out of the way, using another to propel her back towards it, striking it's center mass with Myrtenaster and igniting it. "There aren't as many of these things as before, so let's deal with-"

She was cut off suddenly when a Dust blast came out of nowhere and struck her in the back, knocking her to the ground.

"Weiss!" shouted Yang, turning to the heiress. However, in doing so she failed to notice the massive punch headed towards her and took it full on, tumbling over the street until she came to a stop next to Weiss.

When her head stopped spinning she noticed that they were now surrounded by the vine creatures, who now looked much more dangerous from her new position

But before she even had time to let the fear sink in they were all engulfed in flames, falling to the ground as they burned.

From outside the circle of flames she could hear a voice say "Long time no see, Blondie! Need a hand?"

Yang recognized the voice in all of its smugness, her eyes flashing red as rage began to grow inside her.

" _Mercury!..._ "

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Rubin was having a more difficult time with the vine creatures than she'd anticipated; for every slash or stab she made the wounds were always replaced with new vines just as fast, and it infuriated her.

" _Why! Won't! You! Stupid! Plants! Stay! Hurt!_ " she yelled as she hacked at the beast to no lasting effect.

Needless to say, the young débutante was rapidly losing her patience with the whole ordeal.

 _At least the_ Faunus _aren't doing much better,_ she noted, sparing a glance at Blake and Rosey. She's gotten separated from the rest of the group when she's run after a bunch of the vine creatures that were making their way further into the city, with only the two people from the group she tolerated the least following after her.

It wasn't really helping improve her mood much.

She leaped back and prepared to lunge at her foe, sparing a moment to make sure her footwork was proper; by now she just wanted the fight to end so she could move into the next one, and she'd been unable to think of any other solutions to achieve that result.

 _OK, so since those things came out of seeds, and they're mobile, then all I have do is find that core and destroy it to kill them,_ her mind reasoned. _..._ maybe _I'll let Belladonna and her charity case in on this if I think they're having trouble._ Justified in her decision she lungs at the floral beast, aiming for the center mass. (It was the most logical location for the seed that birthed it to be, after all.)

And right before the tip of her Myrtenaster made contact Rosey suddenly appeared in front of her, slashing at the beast with her Crescent Rose.

Rubin barely had enough time to shout "Move!" before spearing the creature through the young Faunus's shoulder, inches off from where she was aiming.

"Why the _hell_ did you _do_ that?!" she asked angrily, removing her weapon from Rosey and flicking the blood off, "I was _about_ to kill it!"

"S-sorry…," she whimpered, trying not to wince as she held her shoulder. "I-I j-just thought-"

"You? _Think?_ " the débutante interrupted, " _Please_ , if you're kind could _think_ , you _wouldn't_ rely on the us humans to stay fed."

Rubin would have continued to lay into Rosey about her race had the vine creature not finishing repairing its wounds and pulled its massive fist back, ready to pummel the girls.

Apparently Rosey noticed it and immediately threw herself on top of the débutante in an attempt to protect her from the upcoming attack; Rubin was so stunned by the sudden action that all she could was stare up at the giant, descending fist above them.

Only it never hit, because Blake appeared and parried the attack with Gambol Shroud's cleaver sheath. The monster reeled back momentarily before swinging another fist, this time at Blake. It appeared to hit her, until Blake's body burst into flames that evaporated upon contact, quickly spreading along the creature's arm until its whole body was engulfed.

"Are you two OK?" she asked, now suddenly behind the girls, her head twisting back and forth between Rubin and Rosey.

"Y-yeah," Rosey nodded, tugging her cloak around her injured shoulder, "w-we're good. Thanks f-for h-helping us."

"Where _were_ you?" Rubin asked, both because she wanted the answered to that question and because for whatever reason, Rosey wasn't going to rat her out for the little accident a moment ago, and she wasn't going to bring it up herself. "Was that last minute rescue supposed to _impress_ me or something?"

"It was supposed to keep you two from getting hit by those things," the older Faunus answered, "As for where I just was, I was dealing with a squad of White Fang members who showed up." She ejected the magazine from Gambol Shroud and quickly inserted a new one. "There might be more of them around, so I'm going to go deal with with them."

At the mention of the White Fang, Rubin suddenly felt uncharacteristically helpful towards the older girl, "the enemy of my enemy" and such. "I'll come with you-"

"No." Blake shook her head before the débutante could finish. "You and Rosey need to stay here and take care of these plant things; if you have any red Dust, use it, these things are weak to fire." And with that she ran off into the chaos, pulling off the trick with her Semblance whenever she had to engage with the monsters.

"...why _didn't_ you tell her?" Rubin wondered once she was sure Blake was out of earshot. "It's _not_ like I've exactly gone out of my _way_ to be nice to you or anything, so why not get _back_ at me for all that?"

"W-well, I don't kn-know," she shrugged, "I just n-never thought an-bout it. A-and you s-seem like you be a n-nice person if you st-stopped being so angry all the t-time."

Rubin didn't have an immediate response for that. Not because she wasn't expecting the young Faunus to be nice to her- she'd have to be blind to not notice how the meek girl often went out of her way to be nice to her -but rather it caught her off guard how inherently optimistic she was in thinking that she, _Rubin Schnee_ , was a good person.

And for some reason that gave her more pause than she was comfortable with.

"Can you d-deal with th-the plants?" she asked before Rubin could dwell for too long on her uncomfortable revelation.

"Um, _of course_!" she answered almost automatically, "Why do you _ask_?"

"Bec-cause I'm going to help B-Blake," Rosey said, before running off in the direction Blake did.

It took Rubin a moment to actually register what happened. "Hey! W-wait a min-!" the débutante called after Rosey, only to be cut off when another plant monster lumbered in front of her.

"... _fine_ then!" she shouted, switching her Myrtenaster to the red Dust as she prepared to face the creature, "It's _not_ like I needed your help anyway!" She made an underhanded slash along the ground, which caused a streak of fire to travel towards the plant thing and immolate it.

 _Tch, good_ riddance _!_ she silently fumed, _She'd_ only _get in my way again; it's totally_ better _this way!_

 _...right?_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

RJ had never been as scared in her entire life as she was right now. True, there'd been times when she'd been worried whether or not she'd pass a test, or been nervous during the first sports meet of the season, or been on the edge of her seat when Barb was on the verge of losing a match, but this was different.

It was just dawning on the teenage girl that she could actually _die_ here.

"DUCK!" Cress yelled, RJ still having enough presence of mind to obey the sudden command and throwing herself on the ground, narrowly avoiding getting a buzz cut via scythe blade. She felt something sticky speckle on the back of her neck, and it took all her willpower not to cry out and thrash around in disgust.

 _Why the hell is this happening to me?_ she bemoaned. _All I wanted to do when I got home was take a nice, refreshing shower and then spend the rest of the evening pwning scrubs in Call of Duty, but NOOOOOO, I get transported to this weird Mass Effect looking world where everyone goes to school to learn how to fight like Naruto and where_ APPARENTLY _giant fricking plant monsters are a thing and they can spawn ads like some BS final boss who-_ "AAH!" she screamed as another plant monster tried to smash her, but she managed to roll out of the way thanks to the adrenaline pumping through her system right now.

 _I wanna go home!_ she whined. The monster raised its fist for another strike, _I wanna go home, I wanna go home, I wannagohome, Iwannagohome, Iwannagohome, IwannagohomeIwannagohomeIwannagohomeIWANNAGOHOMEIWANNAGOHOMEIWANNA-_

" _Miss Jones_!"

"Eep!" she squeaked, snapping out of her panic; now Sister was holding her firmly by her should, kneeling on the ground next to her.

"Can you run?" the elder huntress asked, to which RJ nodded meekly, "Then get to the float from Atlas and hide in the Paladin; I'll make sure you get there safe." RJ nodded again, but was still in too much of a shock to do anything. "...GO!"

At the abrupt urging the fifteen year old girl finally responded, booking it down the road as fast as she could. Sister shifted her Crescent Rose into it's sniper form and tagging any plant monster RJ ran by, keeping their attention off the teenager.

After passing by a couple other floats she reached the one from Atlas, the robot soldiers still doing their drills as though nothing was out of the ordinary. She scrambled up to the giant mech and climbed inside the open hatch, frantically searching for a way to close it.

" _Come on come on come on!_ " she muttered, none of the buttons or switches she tried having any effect other than the typical clicking sounds.

In desperation she tried to pull the hatch closed herself, but was interrupted by a pleasant female voice coming through the speaker system.

" _Hello, and welcome to the PLDN Mechanized Combat Walking Tank V2 prototype,"_ the voice said, causing RJ to start a little. " _I am the System Help Interface and Easy Learning Aid. May I be of assistance?"_

"How do I close the hatch?" she asked immediately, "And why doesn't anything work?"

" _This unit is currently in a low powered state to avoid accidental weapon discharges until such time that it is needed."_

"Well, it's time now!" RJ burst impatiently, "There are these plant monster things running around out there, and if I don't get that hatch closed soon one of them might get in here!"

" _Oh my, that would be rather unfortunate, since there are many delicate electronics within the cockpit. Please take your seat while I initiate a power up."_

RJ nodded (though in the back of her mind she wondered if the gesture was even necessary, since she was talking to a computer.) and sat in the pilot's chair. "OK, I'm ready."

" _Initiating startup sequence,"_ the voice announced. A second later lights started flashing on around the interior, and RJ could hear what sounded like her Xbox powering on. A moment later she heard a clamp and a hissing noise as the hatch sealed shut. " _Main power on, now commencing weapons check routine."_

RJ breathed a sigh of relief, only half listening as the computer voice began running through the weapon systems. _OK, I should be safe in here until Sister and Cress deal with...whatever those things are. ...I just wish I wasn't so weak and useless here, or else I'd still be out there fighting with them instead of hiding in here like a sniveling-_

" _Check complete; all weapon systems primed and functional,"_ the computer announced, " _Power levels at seventy-two and rising, now engaging primary motor functions."_

RJ mentally slapped herself for not fully realizing where she was, quickly looking over the controls in front of her.

 _These are...just like the controller for Steel Battalion! Holy crap, I actually know how those work! And if these ones work the same way..._

"Hey, computer?"

" _I am the System Help Interface-"_

"Yeah yeah," she interrupted, waving dismissively, "I got it the first time; can you give me a rundown of the controls for this thing?"

" _I am equipped with a tutorial program for precisely that purpose!"_ the computer said, and RJ could have sworn it sounded cheerful about it, " _Shall I run it for you now?"_

"Yes to that!" she said, putting on her "game face" and grabbing hold of two levers on the console.

 _Oh yeah baby, time to show these scrubs why RlyRlyKoolKid_ always _tops the leaderboards!_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _OK, everything is all set up, now to see how all these fights go!_

 _And yes, I'm going to start the fights next time, no need to worry. I have very specific plans for what's supposed to happen on them, mostly resolution for a lot of the subplots I've been setting up throughout the story, so that's something to look forward to._

 _And In a bit of unrelated news, I've recently taken up Twitch streaming! I currently stream twice a week on Sunday and Wednesday, so come and check those out. (My Twitch handle is "the_layman", and you'll know it's me because I'll have an icon of a plushy Yang on my profile. I also archive my streams on YouTube, the link to which is on my Twitch profile as well.)_

 _And that's all for now! See y'all next chapter for the beginning of the fights!_


	23. Black, red, and white

_Alright, here's the first of the fights: Blake, Rosey and Rubin versus…well, you'll see, won't you?_

 **Warning: brief, strong language.**

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

It was worse than she thought; Blake had only been expecting, _hoping_ , to only run into the rank and file White Fang when she left Rubin and Rosey, deal with them, and promptly hurry back to the girls.

She hadn't counted on Adam Taurus leading this particular group she chose to follow.

" _Blake_ , so good to see you, _darling_!" he snarled, the malice in his voice practically palpable, "Did you have fun switching sides, or were you just to much of a _coward_ to do what needs to be done?"

The ex-White Fang just stood there, fighting against her primal instinct to "Get the hell away from there!" Adam wasn't exactly wrong insinuating that she was a coward; she ran away from the White Fang after the train job, she hid the fact that she was a Faunus when she applied to Beacon...even her Semblance was geared towards running away.

But she wasn't the same person as back then. Now, she had a family who were (presumably) doing their best to protect the city from the plant monsters, and a young girl who looked up to her like a mother.

She'd be damned if she would let any of them down.

"I may have ran away in the past," she said, drawing Gambol Shroud from its sheath, "but I'm not the one who hides behind 'justice' as an excuse to be a monster who kills innocent people!"

"I do what's necessary!" he rebutted hotly. "Peaceful protests were getting us nowhere, so we became, and it started working! So what if a few humans died along the way?" He then gestured for his soldiers to disperse, dropping into a stance and grasping the hilt of his sword. "And the thing about monsters, _precious_ , is that we don't like it when we get betrayed."

Blake charged at him, swinging sword and sheath from opposite sides in the hope that he couldn't block both swings at once. Unfortunately he didn't try to block, or even dodge; instead he performed a rapid draw, cleaving the space in front of him so fast that Blake almost didn't see it happen.

Then her body fell to the ground, bisected at the waist.

And a second later it evaporated into shadows.

Without turning around, Adam angled his own sheath so it intercepted the strikes Blake aimed at his back.

"Is that the best you can do, _pudding_?" he asked, growling out another term of endearment, "I thought I trained you better than that, but I guess I was wrong about _that_ too."

Without saying anything, Blake activated her Semblance, leaving behind a clone made of lightning. It exploded, forcing Adam back a few metres.

"I learned some things in my own," she stated. She shifted Gambol Shroud to its gun mode and opened fire on her former friend and mentor. It ended up having little effect on him, as whatever bullets he didn't dodge, he managed to effortlessly deflect with his katana.

 _Dammit, this isn't working; all I'm doing is stalling!_ she swore, _I need to find a way to end this fast!_

Taking a chance, she stopped firing and switched Gambol back to its sword mode, reattaching the cleaver sheath. Adam charged at her, and she was barely able to block his attack before getting pinned against a lamppost.

"You're never going to beat me," he taunted, "no matter how many new tricks you've learned; you've grown soft playing 'hero' while _I've_ -"

She never let him finish. Pressing back as hard as she could with one arm, Blake used her free hand to toss Gambol Shroud's ribbon. It wrapped around them and the lamppost a couple times before she caught it and pulled tight, also locking her legs around his waist. She quickly used her Semblance to escape the hold, leaving a stone copy behind that trapped Adam in place.

 _...that should hold him for a while,_ she sighed, panting as the adrenaline faded from her system. _Now, to get back to Rosey and_ -

" _GRAAAAAAAH!_ " Adam let out a mighty yell and broke out of his stony prison, slicing the lamppost in two in the process.

Before Blake had time to react he'd once again sheathed his sword and activated his own Semblance, his red hair glowing along the accents on his mask and clothing, performing a quick draw that sent a shockwave flying right towards her. It appeared to hit her, but then she faded into shadows, revealing her to only be a clone.

Adam wasn't phased by this and, upon resheathing his sword, flipped it around and fired it backwards, the grunt of pain he heard telling him he hit his target.

"You always were predictable," he sighed, shaking his head; there was a touch of sorrow in his voice when he spoke, "still only a child."

If Blake weren't struggling to breathe she would have made some witty retort. But she was, so she didn't.

"Before I kill you," he turned around, retrieving his weapon as he walked towards Blake's prone form menacingly, "tell me something; why?" He pointed the tip of his katana at her throat. "Depending on your answer, you may get a quick death."

Blake thought back to the night her life started changing, when she and Adam did the train job.

"Because I lost the person I used to care about most," she eventually wheezed, "He turned into a monster, but I didn't realize it until I learned what lines he was willing to cross."

For a moment Adam said nothing, merely staring at his old partner.

He slowly removed the sword from her neck.

...and then stabbed her in the abdomen, Blake crying out in pain as the blade slid into her flesh.

"You understand nothing," he said, drawing his sword back for another stab.

Suddenly, he was tackled for the side by a young Faunus girl wearing a red cloak.

"G-get away from her!" the girl shouted, extracting herself from the White Fang leader. She took out her weapon, a large scythe, and held it at the ready as threateningly as she could. "I w-won't let you hurt her!"

"Rosey-!" Blake gasped, suddenly more fearful than she's been in the rest of the fight; she didn't really care what happened to herself, but Rosey was practically still a child, and Adam had just proved that he was still at the top of his game. "Get out of here!"

Rosey shook her head. "You're hurt, a-and he was going to kill you; I'm not going to l-lose you like everyone else!"

Despite the dire situation, a small part of Blake couldn't help but be touched by the young girl's loyalty and courage.

"Don't interfere, _girl_ ," Adam growled as he picked himself up, "listen to your elder and leave before you get hurt."

Rosey quickly shifted her weapon from Scythe mode to its gun one, aiming it at his center mass. "I won't l-let you hurt her."

Adam smirked. "She reminds me of you," he said to Blake, "back when you were younger."

Blake didn't like how he was smiling when he said that, and the feeling of dread only increased as he grabbed the hilt of his sword once again.

"Perhaps I can teach her a few things."

She was about to tell Rosey to run again, only to see the girl rush towards Adam, firing rounds at him as she ran. The male Faunus effortlessly swatted them aside, barely even needing to expend movement. When she'd almost reached him she shifted her Crescent Rose back to its scythe form and began swinging.

Blake grimaced as she watched Rosey and Adam trade blows; it was clear that Adam was toying with the young girl, since he was wasn't even trying to fight back, and she kept expecting Adam to all of a sudden slice Rosey's arm off. It was nerve wracking waiting for the proverbial hammer to drop, and that was amplified by the fact that she was lying on the ground bleeding and could _do_ anything to help!

Rosey kept attacking Adam, but it was clear that she wasn't making any headway; she'd swing, and Adam would block. She'd tried to psych him out, but he would always she through her. And whenever she'd break off and shoot at him, he's deflect her shots like they were nothing.

On top of that, she was starting to feel exhausted, not helped by her still untreated shoulder wound.

"I'm not sure if you're brave or foolhardy," Adam said, "especially when you're not even fighting me at your full strength." To prove his point he parried Rosey's next strike in a way that twisted her around and kicked at her in the shoulder.

" _Rosey!_ " Blake called out as she watched the young Faunus tumble to the ground, crying out in pain; She winced in sympathy as Rosey clutched her shoulder, a dark stain forming on her cloak.

Adam raised his sword above his head, ready to strike. "You've got plenty of spirit," he said, "Unfortunately, that's all you had."

Blake wanted to look away, but it was like some invisible force kept her gaze locked on the scene before her, unable to break the chains that tethered her; her old friend and partner was about to murder an innocent girl, who was only trying to protect her mother figure, and here she was barely able to stand up, much less rush over and tackle Rosey out of the way without the pain dragging her back down.

But before Adam could bring his sword down it suddenly flew out of his hands, a black glyph appearing above his head.

A moment later Rubin strutted into the street where they were, her rapier held at her side.

"OK, I _know_ you Faunus are suppose to be like animals and everything, but seriously, it's like you're _going_ out of way to prove that point or something," she said, "You're not really _doing_ anything to make me think otherwise."

"What are you-?"

"I wasn't going to _let_ the both of you just leave _me_ to deal with those... _things_ on my own!" she explained, interrupting Blake. "...and it's abundantly _clear_ that you need my help, so I _expect_ to get a huge 'thank you' when this is all over!"

Blake didn't know what to say, but fortunately her mouth moved ahead of her brain. "He's too strong," she warned the young débutante, "just grab Rosey and get out of here!"

As Rubin scoffed her disapproval of Blake's plan, Adam recovered his katana and began stomping his way towards the newest arrival.

"I was under the impression that most of the Schnees were dead," he said, leveling his blade at Rubin, "I guess I'll have to finish the job myself."

"How bad's your wound?" Rubin asked as the White Fang leader got closer.

It took Blake a second to process the question. "I don't think I'll die if it's treated, but why do you-?"

"Then fix yourself and Rosey up and leave that _scum_ to me." Without warning she used a glyph to toss Blake over to where Rosey lay, the cat Faunus grunting in pain as she landed. Satisfied, Rubin turn back to address Adam, her Myrtenaster held at the ready. "Don't expect any _mercy_ from me, _furry!_ "

Adam snarled and made ready for another quick draw, and Rubin responded in kind with her own stance, casting a Haste glyph on herself.

Adam charged and slashed at the débutante, but she leaped back and unleashed a Dust charged slash of her rapier, sending a cutting gust of wind at him. She then used a glyph to propel herself forward, aiming a lunge directly at Adam's center mass.

Unfortunately it wasn't enough to take Adam out; he sliced Rubin's gale in two before it hit him and parried her lunge, both of them locking blades together.

"Did you really think such s simple tactic would work on me?" he asked, "I've killed Schnees far greater than _you_ , I could end you right now if I wanted."

"Then _try_ me!" she challenged, "I'm no _ordinary_ Schnee." They broke out of the lock and Adam took the opportunity to press the attack, swinging faster than most normal people could keep up with.

Blake watched as Rosey bandaged her wound with torn bit of her clothing, her heart skipping a beat every time Adam slashed at the doppelgänger of her team leader. She'd seen Rubin cast the glyph on herself, but that still didn't explain how she was managing to avoid getting hit, especially when the girl hardly ever won a fight since she'd arrive here.

"Sh-she's really good," remarked Rosey. The young Faunus was tying off the ends of what had once been her combat skirt, occasionally looking up at the fight.

"She is," Blake admitted, "but she's been lucky so far; she can't keep dodging Adam forever…."

"I th-think she c-can win," Rosey countered.

 _I hope you're right…_ , Blake wished as she continued watching the fight unfold.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

If there was one good thing Rubin would say about her opponent, it was that he was one of the better fighters she'd ever faced; he was quick, he didn't waste movement, and he knew where to aim to end the fight quickly. It wouldn't do him any good if he couldn't hit anything, but the effort was there nonetheless.

Unfortunately he was still a Faunus, not to mention part of the White Fang (she could only assume the grunts she dealt with before were with him), and that brought his standing down in her eyes.

 _This_ isn't _going anywhere,_ she realized, _He's too good; I need to find_ some _way to trip him up…_

She parried another strike and leapt back, switching her Myrtenaster to the ice Dust as she did. As she landed she plunged her rapier into the ground, causing a sheet of ice to spread over the immediate area.

 _Let's see him_ fight _on my turf!_

To his credit, Adam wasn't phased by the change in terrain. In fact, the ice cracked wherever he stepped, effectively negating the strategy in the first place.

"Hmph, what a cheap trick," he scoffed. "Useless."

Rubin's skin bristled. She wasn't used to getting talked down to, and by a Faunus no less; she was quickly losing control to her anger.

 _Who the_ hell _does that no good, flea bitten_ mongrel _think he- No! Remain calm, Rubin, don't stoop to_ their _level…_ She took a deep breath and let it out through her nose, banishing everything from her mind but what was immediately in front of her. _Get angry at the mutt_ after _you beat him, not_ before _._

"I'll _show_ you 'useless'," she informed him, once more taking her usual stance.

Adam said nothing, merely readying his own attack, his clothes and hair glowing red: another quick draw.

For a moment neither combatant moved.

Adam struck first, releasing a shockwave from his katana as he drew it that headed right for Rubin.

The young fencer saw it coming and leaped over it with a glyph, forming an air step behind her and propelling herself towards her adversary.

 _I have one_ chance _for this_ , she told herself, reversing her grin on her sword, placing her other hand along the blade and holding it out in front of her.

Adam blocked this, but she was counting on that, and when she touched down on the ground and Adam prepare for a two handed, overhead slash, she quickly twirled around and thrust her Myrtenaster behind her, skewering him through the chest.

Two seconds later Adam's sword clattered to the ground, followed by its wielder.

"Serves you _right_ for underestimating me…."

" _Grrrr_! You little-!" he grunted, only to cough up blood before he could finish the curse.

Now that their fight was over Rubin ignored the White Fang leader and instead headed over to Blake and Rosey, flicking the blood off her Myrtenaster.

"Are you two _OK_?" she asked, kneeling down beside them.

"Mmhmm," Rosey nodded, "we're f-fine. Um...you were r-really good just now."

"Um, of _course_ I am!" the débutante scoffed, tossing her hair flippantly. "Like it was ever a _contest_."

"I'm...impressed," Blake said, "you've gotten a lot better since first arrived."

Rubin shrugged. "Well, when you get _batted_ around by that _barbarian_ Crimson, even thing else seems easy." Then she grabbed Rosey's arm and started dragging the young Faunus away, "Now let's get you both to a doctor."

"B-but I'm fine!" Rosey insisted, tripping a little as she was dragged along. "It's n-nothing…"

"It's _not_ nothing!" Rubin snapped, "So just shut _up_ and follow me!" She looked back at Blake, who had moved to follow her yet. "That _means_ you too, _Belladonna_!"

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Cinder was feeling a lot better about things now that her new plan was in motion: the chaos outside was serving as an adequate distraction, and as such she hadn't encountered a single bit of resistance as she made her way down to Beacon's _formerly_ secret vault. She was a bit disappointed that she wouldn't get to recite the grand speech she prepared, she was so close to accomplishing her goal that it didn't really matter; she could _feel_ the other half of her power as she drew near, it's hum practically resonating in the very air itself.

 _Took me long enough_ , she thought to herself as she approached the first, and final, obstacle in her way: a pair of ancient looking, wooden doors.

"For a vault, it's not very secure," she mused, running a hand over the carved surface, "I'll have to fix that later." She summoned a flame abs pressed it into the wood, watching as the fire quickly engulfed the doors, turning them brittle. After a minute she stepped back and summoned her now, knocking an arrow.

A few seconds later the doors completely disintegrated, and she cautiously stepped over the ashes, keeping an alert eye out for any surprises.

She may be a bit cocky, but she wasn't stupid.

Her caution proved fruitful, as she hardly took three steps into the cavernous room before a gunshot ricocheted off the ground by her feet. She stepped back and brought her bow to bear, her eyes scanning the dark room for the assailant.

" _What's up, bitch?"_ a voice asked from the darkness, followed by the sound of a weapon shifting. " _You ready to get fucked?"_

Apparently this was going to be more challenging than she thought….

 _to be continued…_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Well, that's one fight down; now we won't have to worry about Adam anymore._

 _Despite fight scenes not really being my forté I think this one turned out well. (Not my best work by a long shot, but it still serves its purpose.) It was fun to play around with Blake's weapon and Semblence, and to see the results of Rubin's "training" begin to manifest._

 _And in case you're wondering, this fight was always supposed to play out more or less like it did: Blake was supposed to struggle against Adam, Rosey was supposed to defend her "mommy", and Rubin was supposed to clean things up in the end. (And I think I gave reasonably good reasons in universe why everything happened like it did, too.)_

 _As for what's next, we're going to be checking back in on RJ, Sister and Cress to see how they're doing…._


	24. A Titan Falls

_So Blake, Rosey and Rubin just had their moment to shine, now let's see how RJ, Sister and Cress (aka. the characters who didn't really have any development arcs) are faring…._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

There didn't seem to be an end to all the plant monsters; on top of them healing from most cuts and generally being tough, the vine tower kept spawning more seeds every time one of the monsters was actually killed.

"Um, is it just me, or are there more of them _now_ than when we started?" Cress asked while avoiding swipes from one of the plant things' massive forearms. She turned her arm into a gun and fired off a shot at its center mass, which seemed to do the trick; the monster collapsed to the ground, the vines that made it up now limp and formless. "Also, got another one!"

"Well done!" Sister praised as she dealt with her own foes, cleaving a pair of them in two with one swing. They also fell limply to the ground.

It didn't take long for two more to take the place of the fallen.

"However, you're right that their numbers don't seem to be going down…." It wasn't unmanageable, but the longer this dragged on the more fatigued she and the living weapon would become, and the greater the chances of one of them slipping up would become. "If you have any suggestions on how to accomplish that feat, don't be shy about it!"

"Sure, I'll let you know the minute I- eep!" Another falling seed nearly crushed Cress, practically grazing her face. "Call me crazy, but why aren't we dealing with the flower tower?"

It wasn't an inappropriate idea: take out the source of the monsters and mop up the ones that remained. Sister had thought about that for a while, but unfortunately hadn't come up with a plan along those lines to put into effect. "That's a good first step; do you have a Step 2?" she asked.

Cress jumped over the head of one of the plant monsters and used her arm blade to slice down its back, apparently hitting whatever she did last time since it soon collapsed into a pile of vines on the ground. When she landed she shook her head "no".

Sister grimaced. Neither she or Cress had the ability or equipment to deal with the vine tower directly, and while there were a bunch Atlas military around they were the only thing keeping the plant things from spreading farther than they already had.

Before she could ponder the subject further a half dozen seeds suddenly crashed around her in rapid succession, quickly sprouting into the ape like monsters.

 _I suppose "in a pickle" is kind of an understatement now, isn't it?_ she though to herself, her Crescebt Rose held at the ready for when any of the monsters tried something.

Fortunately, although more than a little surprising, the monsters were suddenly washed in a torrent of gunfire, mowing them down in a matter of seconds.

" _Yeah baby, Killtacular!_ " a familiar, amplified announced, and Sister now noticed the massive form of an Atlas Paladin mech coming towards them, a pair of Gatling guns on its shoulders still smoking. " _Hey guys! Guess what I just found!_ "

"...RJ?" Sister called out to the mech, before wondering if she could even be heard from inside the machine.

" _In the flesh!_ " the teenager answered, fortunately putting Sister's fears to rest. " _Isn't this thing sweet! Like, eat you heart out_ Titanfall, _I'm in a_ real _mech suit! This is_ literally _a dream come true for me!_ "

Sister smiled, glad that the teenage girl was no longer paralyzed in fear.

" _It's amazing,_ " she continued, " _it's like these controls are second nature for me! ..in fact, I think I could probably take on one of those Grimm things right now!_ "

"How about a tower made of vines?" the elder doppelgänger asked, her smile growing wider.

" _A stationary Boss that spawns ads? Pfft, that's kiddie stuff!_ "

"Then I'll leave it to you," she said, nodding towards Cress, "Cress and I will take care of all the other monsters running around."

" _Roger that!"_ RJ said, and the Paladin's arm moved in a way that was probably supposed to be a salute. " _OK Shiela, let's go kick Poison Ivy's ass! Um...this thing has incendiary weapons, right?_ "

As the mech headed towards the massive floral structure Sister thought it was a bit odd that RJ would give the machine a pet babe, especially one so human. Then again, it wasn't unheard of; Yang had her Bumblebee, and even she called her Crescent Rose "Sweetheart" occasionally, but it still sounded odd to her.

 _Maybe it's not so strange in her reality_ , she reasoned, figuring questions like that were better left for when plant monsters weren't infesting Vale.

Right now, she needed to let Cress know what was going on.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

RJ was having the time of her life piloting the Paladin. She mean what she said to Sister about it being a dream come true, since she'd wanted to do this ever since she watched some old episodes of G Gundam when she was young.

She absently wondered which was more insane: G Gundam, or her in a real life mech suit fighting weird plant monsters?

Granted, her mech wasn't shaped like a windmill….

" _Sensors indicate the target has only 0.016 likeness to the flora known as "poison ivy", nor does it possess a musculature to form a gluteus Maximus with."_

"It was just an expression, Shiela," RJ sighed, "I didn't mean it literally." She quickly adjusted the guns to deal with a monster that was charging at her before turning her attention back to the vibe tower. "Is there _anything_ about this plant that's out of the ordinary?"

" _Apart from its size, no, there is not."_

"Then it shouldn't be a problem to shoot that thing down to size," she reasoned. "...but seriously, are you _sure_ you don't have any incendiary weapons?"

" _Affirmative. Regardless, this unit's Dust reserves have been emptied to prevent accidental casualties during the parade."_

RJ sighed. "I guess good old fashioned bullets will have to do…." She aimed the shoulder guns at the base of the tower, pulling the trigger, and for a couple seconds hot lead peppered one of the twisting trunks, gouging part of it out.

Then the guns just spun empty, all the ammunition spent.

"That's not good…," RJ said, mentally slapping herself for not paying attention to the remaining ammo. "Shiela, what weapons _does_ this thing have?"

" _The missile batteries are stocked at 50% capacity,"_ the computer informed her, " _Would that sufficient to 'kick its ass', as you put it?"_

"It's better than nothing," the teenager shrugged, flipping switches, "I was just gonna start punching it, anyway."

" _Very well, missiles armed and ready. You may fire at will."_

"Roger that!" RJ flipped the appropriate switches and grabbed the weapons joystick, squeezing the trigger and announcing "Fire in the hole!" as the missile ports opened and let loose their contents. The missiles arced out from the mech before changing course and slamming into the base of the towering vines, tearing out huge chunks of plant with each explosion.

"Yeah!" she cheered, "Take that, Mother Nature!"

When the giant, entwined stalks began to tip over, it took her a moment to realize that she was still underneath it.

"Shoulda seen that coming…," she squeaked, turning her machine around. "Shiela, is there a way to make this thing go faster?" she asked hurriedly.

" _This unit does process a-"_

"Then turn that on full blast!"

" _...I'm sensing that you wish me to simply activate the afterburners?"_

"Uh, _DUH!_ "

" _Very well, engaging afterburner boost system."_ RJ heard a new whine start up, slowly getting louder as it went on. " _You may wish to brace yourself,"_ the AI cautioned.

RJ just barely managed to sit back in her seat before the giant robot shot forward, the sudden increase in G force slamming into her like a wave; if she hadn't been already leaning back, her neck might have snapped.

 _What I wouldn't give for a pressurized suit right now!_ she thought as the machine surged forward. She was grateful that Shiela was installed in the thing, because otherwise she would have crashed into all the buildings in her escape.

Plus, despite the fact that she was essentially driving a walking tank, she was still freaking out slightly at the thought of getting crushed under a thousand foot tall mutant vine growth, so she was glad it wasn't _her_ doing the driving.

 _I hope Sister and Cress notice this thing falling!_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Sister and Cress weren't in a good way; for some reason the number of plant monsters had suddenly skyrocketed, practically flooding the street with how dense they were packed.

 _This isn't good…,_ Sister panted, still managing to to keep her scythe at the ready despite how exhausted she was now feeling. _I_ really _wish we hadn't gotten separated._

Another monster charged at her and she leaped over it, slashing it longways down its middle as she did. She landed just as it collapsed into a pile, only to have to jump out of the way as yet another one swung a punch at her. She quickly morphed her Crescent Rose into a gun and shot it's center mass, immediately turning around and doing the same to one behind her that was about to smash her with its fists.

 _Does this have something to do with RJ attacking the stalks?_ she wondered as she continued one shoting the plant creatures.

Not a moment after she thought that her ammo ran out, a dull clicking sound ringing out as she pulled the trigger.

"Oh, this isn't good…," the elder doppelgänger realized, nearly getting caught in a swipe by one of the creatures. She quickly shofted her weapon back to its scythe form and sliced the offending creature before it could strike again.

" _Yeah,"_ she heard Cress call to her, "definitely _more of them now!"_

"This clearly isn't working," Sister stated, "Until RJ can deal with the source, we should-"

She was interrupted by one of the plant monsters spitting something from its "mouth", which landed on her weapon and immediately started smoking and sizzling, causing her to shriek as she dropped it to the ground.

"We should...what?" Cress asked, looking over at Sister for some kind of confirmation of what the plan was when she saw the older girl drop her weapon. "Um, are you _sure_ that's a good idea?" She ran over to Sister, absently shooting one of the plant things off to the side.

As she got close she could see that Sister was visibly shaking.

"...is everything OK?" the living weapon asked hesitantly.

"M-my...Sweetheart…!" she stammered, "She's…."

Cress looked over to wear Sister's weapon lay; it was covered in some kind of thick, yellow goop that was sizzling and occasionally popping.

She didn't know why, but when she saw the state of that poor weapon something inside her just snapped.

"Use me," she told Sister, "I won't let your Sweetheart's sacrifice be in vain!"

Sister looked at the living weapon quizzically, but this soon turned to amazement when she started to transform, morphing from a young girl into a perfect replica of her high caliber sniper scythe.

"Oh my!" she gasped as Crescent Rose stood upright, "When were you…?"

" _Less talky, more slicy!_ " Cress barked, her voice seeming to come from nowhere, " _These weirdos aren't gonna cut themselves up!_ "

Sister wasn't stunned by this for more than a couple seconds, and her look of surprise was soon replaced by one of fierce determination. She grabbed hold of Crescent Rose's shaft, drawing her back as the graceful young woman prepared to charge into the hoards of plant monster.

"Let us make this a battle for the ages!" she declared.

" _Let's kick their butts!_ " Crescent Rose responded in kind.

As she charged forward, Sister felt like her mind was getting bathed in information, new techniques and moves, some of which the prodigious Huntress wasn't aware could be done. Or rather she knew these things could be accomplished, but had previously never been able to figure out how. Why this suddenly was she could only guess, but when the monsters were being felled left and right the "why" didn't really matter.

" _On your left!_ " Crescent shouted, and she shifted into her sniper form as Sister turned to fire on a cluster of the plant monsters, nailing each of them with a shot to their cores. Then Crescent Rose morphed back into a scythe and Sister spun her around like a baton, charging into another group of the monsters and slicing them up as she passed.

"This is incredible!" the graceful Huntress exclaimed, using Crescent Rose to swing around a lamppost, firing rounds whenever a plant monster came in sight. "Is this what it's like when you fight with your companions?"

" _Sort of,_ " she said, sounding like her answer would have been accompanied by a shrug were the weapon still in her human form, " _except I'm usually the one using my friends to fight; you're like,_ really _better at it then they are though._ "

Sister nodded and continued to lay waste to the monsters, now nailing some of the farther creatures with ricochets off of poles and signs and the like; she would have to talk with Cress more when this was all over.

A short while later Crescent Rose asked " _Am I crazy, or is the sun going down earlier that usual?_ "

Sister looked up and saw the giant tower of vines slowly begin to topple over, casting a shadow over the street as it fell. On instinct she leaped onto one of the monster's heads and propelled herself towards the nearest building with a shot from Crescent Rose. (She managed to hit the monster's center mass as well.)

" _Gangway!"_ RJ shouted as she zoomed by in the Paladin, " _Giang plant, big boom, make scarce!"_

When her feet touched the building fired another round from Crescent Rose in conjunction with a burst from her Semblence, scaling the wall in no time and reaching the roof moments before the vine tower hit the ground: the impact was so massive that it almost caused Sister to fall off the roof, which might have been the case had she not braced herself with Crescent Rose. Once the shaking stopped she peered over the edge.

 _That appears to have taken out a majority of the plant monsters,_ she noted; the massive vines took up most of the street, barely leaving any room on its sides, _the military should be able to deal with those that remain._

" _Did we get all of 'em?_ " Crescent Rose asked, sounding more than a little exhausted.

"I believe so," Sister confirmed, "at the very least, the tower collapsing destroyed a vast majority of the monsters."

" _Good!_ " Then Crescent Rose transformed back into her human form, "Cuz I'm _super_ pooped right now!" She crumpled to the floor, panting heavily. "I know they say your first transformation can be rough, but this is ridiculous!"

"Well, I'd say you've earned the right to rest," Sister commented, joining the younger doppelgänger on the roof. She reached into her cloak (which looked decidedly less white than it used to) and pulled out her Scroll, "I'm going to call the others and make sure they're alright, OK?"

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

RJ groaned, holding her head as she waited for it to stop spinning.

" _Owwwwwwwwww…_!" she declared. "Hey, Shiela? You didn't happen to catch the number of that giant plant that fell on us, did you?"

The AI responded almost immediately. " _Zzzzzzsensors did not regizzzzzster any zzzzerial num-num-num-num-num-num-num- *brzzt!* identification on the floral anomaly._ "

RJ raised an eyebrow at the glitch laden speech Shiela was producing. "Uh, Shiela?" she asked, "Are you OK?"

" _Oh, neverrrrrrrrrr- *brzzt!* ...interezzzting; the zzziezmic shock muzzzt have unaliiiiiiiii- *brzzt!* knocked zzzome zzzurcuits out of whack. Give me a moment to perform a zzzelf diagnos-nos-nos- *brzzt!* check up._ " RJ sighed.

"Never fails," she said to herself, "I finally get a giant robot and it ends up breaking before I can really get to play with it…."

While Shiela did her thing, RJ took the time to read all the emergency messages that were popping up on the HUD; it was mostly warnings that this or that system was in danger of fail, with the occasional message saying that something needed to be replaced.

"Not really much I can do about that," she muttered to herself. If she understood Shiela's brief explanation of everything correctly most of the problems that resulted from the plant tower crashing down were mechanical, and while she was fairly adept at tinkering with her skateboard, things like Barb's motorcycle made her head spin just thinking about all the moving parts involved. (She usually stuck to handing barb her tools in that case.)

Bottom line, she hoped the robot's insurance hadn't run out.

" _Zzzzzzyzteh-teh-tem re-re-re-reboot required,_ " Shiela announced, " _Pleazzzzze conta-ta-ta-ta-tact zzzzyztem technician to- *brzzt* Hello, I am the Zzzzyztem Help Interfazzze and Eazzzy Learning Aid. How ma-ma-may I help you?_ "

"Um…," RJ asked hesitantly for fear that anything too difficult might cause Shiela to crash completely, "can you tell how many plant monsters are left?"

" _Yezzzzzz- *brzzt* Afirmative; zzzcannerz appear to be fun-fun-functional._ " After a series of strained sounding beeps Shiela reported " _Zzzcan inconcluzzzzzzz- *brzzt* failed; parameterzzzz not recognizzzzzed._ "

 _So much for that...the tower probably got most of them anyhow._ "How about regular humans? ...and Faunus, them too!"

Another strained series of beeps. " _There appearzzzzz to be a zzzzing- *brzzt* one unconciouzzzzz human figure 6.4935 meterzzzzz behind thizzzz unit. Further rezzzzultzzzz impozzzzzible, maxzzzzimum zzzscanning range izzz 20 meterzzzz._ "

"Open the hatch!" she barked, scrambling to undo the safety harness; she may not be able to reverse tune a transmission (or however that engine stuff worked…) but she'd seen her fair share of sports injuries and knew how to do CPR pretty well, so she didn't want to waste any time if whoever that person was had any fatal injuries.

" _Of courzzzzze, [Dave],_ " Shiela happily complied, the hatch hissing open a second later. " _Daizzzzzy, daizzzzzy…._ "

Ignoring Shiela's mental (and probably physical, too) breakdown RJ climbed out of the hatch and dropped back to the ground, rushing over to the unconscious figure the mech's AI indicated; she could see some of the plant monsters further on, unharmed by massive vine tower now taking up most of the street, but they were being by the soldiers, so she didn't worry about them too much.

The person in question lay under one of the large rose petals the vine sprouted, their head and upper body stick out. RJ made it over and tried to lift the oversized petal up, but it proved to be heavier than anticipated. She glanced around, hoping to find something with which to pry the giant petal off, but nothing revealed itself. "Guess I'll have to wait for the others to get beck," she sighed in resignation.

Ignoring that for the moment, she focused her attention on the victim, who she could now tell was a girl around her age. She put two fingers to the girl's neck. _Well, she's still alive, so that's good._

Now that it was clear she wasn't in immediate danger, RJ noticed the girl's hair was covering her face.

"Maaaaybe just a peek to check for a concussion," she justified, her curiosity getting the better of her.

She gently brushed the girl's hair back.

" _Holy crap_ ," she gasped softly upon seeing an almost exact reflection of her own face on the girl, "Houston, we got another one…."

 _to be continued…_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Two down, two to go..._

 _Hello all, and apologies again for the long wait since the last chapter. I've been doing a lot of stuff IRL, so that's kind of gotten in the way for writing, so I don't have as much time for that as I used to. Regardless, I don't plan on abandoning my fics just yet! (Or at all, really.) I'm going to see this to the end, and yes, I do have an ending planned. Plus Bonus chapters!_

 _Anyway, next time we'll see how Yang handles her rematch with Mercury..._


	25. A nice Catharsis

_OK, we're getting closer to the end of this fight. On that note, let's go check in on Yang and that...Mercury._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"What the hell are _you_ doing here?" she demanded, glowering as hard as she could at the silver haired boy standing over her.

"Oh, you know…," he shrugged, "just thought I'd enjoy the Festival: see the sights, grab a bite to eat-" He then lifted his leg and pointed his boot at the prone blonde, "-say hi to some old friends, things like that."

Yang grimaced. She knew Mercury had an advantage at the moment, so her best bet would be to keep him distracted and wait for an opening, despite how every fiber of her body wanted to sock him in his smug face. "You're leg healed up well," she commented.

A very annoying looking smirk made its way onto his face. "I know, right? It's amazing what having artificial limbs does for a guy. Still hurt like a _bitch_ when you punched it out, though, so thanks for that." He shook his leg a little for emphasis, "Do you even _know_ how freaking hard it is to fix these things with just stuff lying around a warehouses? It's _ass_ , by the way!"

Yang chuckled.

"What's so funny?" he asked.

"You wouldn't get it," she explained, propping herself up on her good arm, "Besides, my daddy told me it's not nice to make fun of crippled people!"

This actually caused Mercury's cocky expression to falter, his foot slowly descending until it rested on the ground. "I could say the same about you," he retorted, and gestures to the brace on Yang's arm, "Miss 'Tournament winner'." Then he reached behind his back and pulled out a pistol and aimed it at her forehead. "Unfortunately, I'll have to settle for this as payback for the leg, because I'm a busy man and there's other things my boss wants me to do before she gets back. Oh yeah, any last words and all that crap?" Yang thought for a moment.

"Yeah," she decided, turn the safety off first."

Mercury spared a glance to check his weapon, which was exactly what Yang was hoping for; she swept her leg at Mercury's, knocking him over, and proceeded to wrench his gun away from him as he lay stunned on the ground, tossing it aside.

He didn't stay stunned for long, though, and kicked the brawler off of him, quickly jumping back to his feet.

"OK then," he said, limbering up, "I guess we're doing it this way."

Yang also stood back up, dropping into a boxing stance.

"Fine by me; let's see if you're as fast as your namesake!"

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Neo was almost disappointed at how easy it was to breach the CCT tower; there had only been a couple guards stationed outside the place, and they _barely_ even put up much of a fight. It was pathetic, and more than a little worrying that _this_ was the big, powerful army General Ironwood sang praises of to the masses.

A thought crossed her mind as she rode the elevator up to the top floor: if anything, she'd done the man a service by weeding out those two examples of nepotism, thereby ridding his army of two weak links in it's chain. Of course that would make them stronger in the long run, but when their "long run" consisted of a day or two more _at most_ , it went really something she was overly worried about.

She watched as the numbers over the elevator doors blinked in sequence, growling irritably the numbers lit up each time it passed a floor, the stupid thing was going too slow, in her opinion, and she wished there was a way to speed things up a little! She was never a very patient person to begin with, and every second this task didn't get done was time wasted in getting Roman out of the pokey!

...she missed him, ok? He always stole the best ice cream.

Regardless, after another ten, agonizing seconds the elevator dinged and the doors opened to a room lined with kiosks, with an island in the middle that had kiosks facing those on the walls. She smirked, making her way to the closest one, and after dusting the seat off sat down daintily and plugged her Scoll into the waiting port.

A little animatic of a spinning hourglass appeared on the screen, with the word "Searching…" under it.

Neo raised an eyebrow at the behavior; she was under the impression that the device was supposed to read and activate the virus Cinder planted instantly.

As if in responses to her suspicion, the Scroll's display changed to a blinking red X.

Now more than a little miffed, she redocked the Scroll, only to get the same result, growing more furious as the outcome refused to change no matter how many times she tried.

"That's not going to work," a stern voice said from behind her, "not anymore."

Neo whirled around, parasol at the ready, coming face to face with Glynda Goodwitch.

One of the most renowned Huntresses in all of Remnant.

And with her were Ironwood and a cubic buttload of Atlas soldiers.

Well.

"You may as well come quietly," the General said, gesturing with one arm to his cadre, "you're outnumbered and outgunned."

Ignoring the slight against her mute demeanor (however unintentional it might have been...probably), Neo tried to look for a way out. Her usual method of abscess still needed a path to work, and being at the top of a very high tower didn't afford many convenient escape routes, save for a _very_ suicidal one; even if she was willing to test how much weight her parasol could carry, there weren't any windows in this room.

In her frustration, Neo threw her Scroll to the ground and stomped on it until it was nothing but scrap.

When she was finished with her temper tantrum she dropped her parasol and held her arms out limply in front of her.

As she was cuffed and escorted out of the tower, she wondered how they could have found out what Cinder had planned.

Though on the bright side her arrest meant she'd be reunited with Roman soon.

...she'd label this as a net victory.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

It turned out that Mercury was _not_ as fast as his name would suggest.

Of course, that didn't mean he wasn't keeping up with Yang. In fact, it was quickly becoming clear that he'd been holding back against her during the Tournament a few days ago.

"You know, I expected you to be dumb because of your hair," the silver haired boy taunted as he launched kick after kick at her, "and I was right; you actually think you'll win,"

Yang grunted and tried to knock him out with an uppercut to the jaw, but he easily tilted his head out of the way. She tried just straight up pinching him, but he managed to deflect or dodge all her strikes and follow up with kicks of his own; he was even able to dodge out of the way of her shotgun blasts.

She was getting pretty pissed off now.

"I oughta be applauded for holding back like I did in our fight," he continued. "I mean, if I weren't planning to lose on purpose we wouldn't even be doing this." He landed a roundhouse kick on the side on Yang's head, causing her to stumble. "But because a certain Emerald goofed up, we've had to rework how things turned out-" He shoved her into a wall with a lock to the chest. "-hence why I'm here, beating you down."

Yang wanted to shut Mercury up _so_ bad; she was actually wishing she'd run into that midget from the train, at least she didn't blather on and on!

"But hey, at least I got to enjoy the Festival because of that, so I'm not really mad."

She needed to think of something, or else this pissant would beat her, get his gun back, and finish both her and Weiss off.

 _Yeah, not gonna happen!_

"Plus I get a chance to test my hew leg out, so bonus."

"Do you _ever_ shut up?" Yang groaned, peeling herself off the wall.

Mercury made an exaggerated show if thinking about the question. "...nope!" he said eventually, popping the P, "Why, it bug you?"

Yang just glared at him.

"I'll...just take that as a 'yes' and keep doing it anyway. _Gawd_ , I can't tell you how good it feels to not have to fight fair anymore!" He micked Yang in the face again, knocking her to the side. "It's fun, you should really try it sometime!"

By this point Yang was barely holding back her rage, her eyes glowing red. She _really_ wanted to pummel the grey haired snot into the ground, but at the same time she didn't want to lose control to do so; on top of it not tending to work out well for her in the past (recent and otherwise), she wanted to be fully aware when it happened so she could properly enjoy the satisfaction of-

She noticed that Mercury was brushing something off his boot.

Something long, thin, and golden.

...screw that noise, all bets were off!

"Well Blondie, it's been fun catching up with you. I doubt the feeling's mutual, but hey, at least we figured out which of us should have actually won the dumb tournament." He lifted his leg above his head, ready to bring it down on her, "See ya later, hot stuff!"

Then he brought his leg down directly towards her head.

Yang's arm shot up and caught the deadly limb right at its ankle.

"You wanna see hot stuff?" she asked, her hair starting to glow as her Semblance flared to life. She squeezed her hand, eliciting a cry of agony as his leg was crushed, now hanging limply from her grasp. "I'm so hot, _I burn_!"

"You _bitch_!" he wailed, "it took me _hours_ to freaking fix that leg!"

Yang ignored Mercury's moaning, instead rising to her feet and swinging him at the wall. (The impact left a shallow, human shaped indent.) As he slid to the ground, she fired a shotgun blast at his other leg, obliterating it.

With Mercury laying in tears, she let her Semblance die down, her eyes returning to their normal lilac color.

"It looks like _you_ -" she said, still slightly winded from the fight. She took out a pair of sunglasses (that had amazingly survived the fight) and put them on, "don't have a leg to stand on anymore!"

In the distance a large rumbling sounded, like something massive had fallen over.

"Pass me my gun, will you?" Mercury asked through his pain, "After that pun, I feel like offing myself and saving you the trouble."

"Oh screw you, that was _brilliant_!" Yang shouted, "Everyone's always a fricking critic: my sister, my partner, my sister's partner, my-" Then she remembered, "Weiss!" She turned around and ran over to the comatose heiress, calling "Don't move, I'm not through with you yet!" as she did.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Weiss drifted in and out of consciousness, never really spending too much time in either extreme before listing back to the other. That would be annoying in any case, but the fact that she could still feel pain from where she'd been shot made everything all the worse.

It was a weird sensation, being _almost_ unconscious; her mind went to some weird places. For example, she was pretty sure she could hear Yang calling her name.

" _Weiss! Come on, wake up already, Ice Queen!"_

It was surreal, because her voice sounded both muffled and crystal clear at the same time. Like...like she was talking on the other side of a Scroll, and there was a low echo in the background-

" _It's time to Weiss and shine, Princess!"_

...she was going to murder Yang.

"I'm going to murder you…," she croaked, managing to break through to consciousness or if sheer willpower.

" _Yus!_ I knew that would work!" Yang cheered, only to turn melancholy a second later. "Which is really depressing, now that I think about it…." Then she shook her head, "Anyway, you OK? No internal bleeding I should worry about?"

"How would I even know about that?" she asked. Despite how the asanine question was, she did appreciate that the Blonde care enough about her to ask the question. "But no, I think I'll be fine. ...what even hit me?"

Yang jerked a thumb behind her. "That jerk I fought in the Tournament shot you in the back," she explained, "But don't worry, I swept him off his feet just now!"

The fact that Yang was grinning when she said that made Weiss feel like a migraine was coming on.

She ignored that for the moment. "Here," she said, "use Myrtenaster."

Yang look confused. "...you want me to stab him?"

"Oh _gawd_ no! Why in all of Remnant would you even _think_ that?" the heiress exclaimed, looking aghast at the suggestion. She reached for her weapon and, upon grabbing it, ejected the deep blue Dust cylinder from the drum mechanism. "This is ice Dust," she held the cylinder up for Yang to see, "this will make sure he doesn't get away before the authorities get here."

Yang rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. "Yeah, that makes more sense than what I was thinking." She plucked the tube from Weiss's hand and stood back up. "Don't run off on me while I'm gone!" she called back as she presumably ran back over to where Mercury was.

Weiss signed and laid back down, wincing a little at her sore back.

 _I hope everyone else is OK,_ she thought, her young partner and team leader in particular coming to mind. She hadn't seen Ruby since warily that morning, before they'd split into groups and headed to the finale parade.

 _...I'm sure she's fine._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Alrighty, that wraps just about everything happening outside of Beacon! Again, sorry it took a while to get out, real life now isn't the same as what it used to be, so I can spare as much time for writing as I once could._

 _But enough about me! Next chapter will see the big, centerpiece final fight this has all been leading up to with Crimson and Cinder, and afterward some very important questions will be answered. You won't want to miss this!_

 _Also, if any of you guys like videogames, I have a Twitch channel that I stream on twice a week: .tv(slash)the(underscore)layman._


	26. Final Aftershock

_This is it people, the fight you've all been waiting for and the one I've been building up since chapter 22: Cinder Fall, the most hated villain ever (KEEPARKOSALIVE2016) Vs. the badass and psychologically damaged Crimson Thorne._

 _Let's not waste any more time._

 _ **Warning: strong language.**_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Cinder cried out in pain as her back hit the wall with so much force she could have sworn it was broken now.

"You know…," Crimson mused as she menacingly made her way over to the villainess, casual twirling her Crescent Rose around in her hand like it was nothing, "it's sort of fitting that you call yourself 'cinder'."

"And why's that?" Cinder grunted, shakily getting back to her feet.

Crimson stopped twirling her weapon, catching the shaft so that it pointed directly at Cinder. "Because when I'm fucking done with you, you'll be nothing but _ash_!" She grimaced. "Shit, I really let Yang influence me too much…."

"That almost sounds like something I would say in your place," Cinder chuckled, wincing slightly as her body reacted to the reflex. This woman was much stronger than the pseudo-Maiden had expected, and now she was paying for that arrogance: the number of people who could match her in a fight didn't even come close to scratching the double digit numbers, and she had plans in place on the off chance one of them showed up.

Cinder was loathe to admit it, but she should have taken Mercury's impromptu recon report more seriously.

"Please don't," Crimson said, looking desperate, "I'm really mad enough at you as it is, you _really_ don't want to push me to the breaking point."

 _So…_ , the villainess realized, making note of the sudden weakness her opponent displayed, _you have a breaking point, huh? Well, I'll just have to see how far I can push you before we reach that point._

"Don't worry," she assured the deadly, scythe wielding woman standing in front of her, "I'm _much_ more eloquent than this sister of yours."

Crimson shrugged. "It's not that hard," she said, "she uses so many puns it might as well be its own language." Then her face hardened again. "But enough about her, let's get back to killing you!" She began shifting her weapon to its alternate form.

Cinder barely managed to roll out of the way before the weapon finished shifting into a gun, firing a round into the wall where she used to be. She quickly summoned her own weapons and launched herself at Crimson, hoping to catch the woman before she could shift her weapon back into a scythe.

Unfortunately, Crimson managed to block her strike with a combat knife, deflecting the attack and giving herself enough time to shift her weapon. With that done Crimson proceeded to launch herself at Cinder, both blades locking in a clash. Crimson smirked and kicked Cinder square in the chest, once again sending her flying into the wall.

"You know," Crimson planted her Crescent Rose on the ground and leaned on it casually, "you're not a bad fighter, but I was honestly expecting more; I guess that's what you get when you only have _half a gun_!" She chuckled, cocking her head towards the back of the room, "It must be eating you up inside that your goal is _soooooo_ close, and I'm the only thing keeping you from it..."

Cinder didn't respond, though she couldn't help the grimace that spread over her face at the remark.

"Too bad you didn't bring any flunkies with you," she continued, "it might have given you _slightly_ better odds."

"You don't have any allies either," Cinder pointed out. "Doesn't that seem rather arrogant to you?"

Crimson scoffed. "Lady, I survived the _fucking apocalypse_ ; I could fight an entire army and they wouldn't even come close to scratching me!"

There it was, the chink in this woman's armor! Cinder had to use all her willpower to not break out cackling at the discovery; aside from actually being arrogant, she was apparently wasn't even from this world, if her statement about the apocalypse was to be believed, just like her own little, magical pawn.

Now to go in for the kill!...

"How do you cope with all the survivor's guilt?" the villainess asked, "After all, I'm sure a lot of your loved ones must have died in this apocalypse of yours."

It was near instantaneous how fast Crimson seized up, her smugness replaced with a haunted look.

"It can't have been easy, watching people you've known for your whole life get cut down one by one, lying lifeless at your feet while you still go on fighting like nothing happened."

By now Crimson was audibly breathing through her nose.

"Do you even remember their names?" Crimson asked, calmly forming her weapons into a bow and taking aim, "Or are there so many deaths that you don't want to remember? Correct me if I'm wrong, but you must be quite the heavy drinker now, right?"

As Crimson muttered something unintelligible under her breath Cinder let the knocked arrow fly, embedding itself in the shoulder Crimson was leaning on. She hissed in pain, immediately yanking the arrow out and tossing it to the floor where it shattered into pieces.

"You _really_ don't want to do this…," Crimson warned in a low, dangerous voice, to which Cinder smirked.

"I'll take my chances."

Then she struck, the sultry woman firing off arrows in rapid succession. Crimson deflected the arrows, though now her body language told Cinder that her reflexes weren't as sharp as they'd been moments ago; it looked like she was struggling to keep up with Cinder's barrage, and every so often she would dodge out of the way of an arrow, usually at the last possible second with the arrow barely grazing her.

"You know," Cinder began as she started herding Crimson backward towards the Fall Maiden's chamber, "I almost feel sorry for you, holding all those deaths in your conscience. All those restless nights wondering if you could done _anything_ to prevent even _one_ of those deaths from happening…."

" _Shut the fuck up!_ " Crimson screamed.

"Maybe that's why you're trying so hard to keep me from reclaiming the rest of my powers." At this point Cinder dismissed her bow and summoned her fire, her right eye glowing with her Maiden powers. She began lobbing fireballs at Crimson. "Maybe just can't bare to have one more failure on your mind, or maybe this is some misguided act of penance for your crimes. Either way, you aren't going to win."

By this point Crimson had forgone dodging and was just holding her scythe in front of her to block the fiery onslaught. She kept moving back, solely focused on the woman intent on usurping ancient power. Said woman noticed this and subtly formed a glyph behind her, which slowly began to glow until it burst in an explosion of fire. This managed to knock Crimson off balance, allowing Cinder to knock her back with a well placed fireball to the face. She slammed into the second chamber next to the Fall Maiden's.

 _Perfect!_

Cinder strutted up to the fallen soldier woman smugly, her heels clacking on the polished stone floor. "I'll give you credit, not many people can make me work for my victory as hard as you did," she said, "however, it's clear that you're not as invincible as you thought yourself to be."

Crimson made a noise that sounded like coughing.

"You'll have to speak up," Cinder informed her.

"Sorry," she said, now chuckling, "it's just that you reminded me of a friend of mine who's _kinda_ the reason I want you dead so much."

"It's possible," Cinder conceded, "I've killed people before, so this friend of yours might be one of them. Contrary to what you might be thinking I don't go looking for people to kill. However, I do believe in dealing with potential obstacles before they become...problematic."

"...like Pyrrha?"

This gave Cinder pause before she recalled to whom Crimson was referring. "Ah yes, the 'invincible girl' from Mistral, Pyrrha Nikos." _That explains why she was hung up on my 'invincible' comment._ "No, she's no longer a factor in my plans."

"And if she tries to stop you?"

Now it was Cinder's turn to chuckle. "I'll already have the rest of my powers by then, so I suppose she'll be sharing your fate!" She gathered fire in her palm, preparing to slam it into Crimson's face.

Unfortunately, she was never able to follow through with her intention; Crimson abruptly reached out and grabbed the villainess's wrist when it was only a few inches away from her face. Cinder winced as her wrist was squeezed, the flames flickering out.

"Dumb bitch shouldn't have said that…," Crimson said, apparently to no one in particular. "That is _literally_ the last she should have said…!" She glanced up at Cinder, her eye now glowing pure silver.

Cinder rarely felt fear in her life, and could probably count on one hand the amount of times it's happened.

Right now, every single fiber of her being was positively _screaming_ at her to run.

"When I said you shouldn't push me, that was for _your_ benefit, not mine; you fucking murdered Pyrrha right in front of my eyes, so now I'm gonna show you _exactly_ what that felt like for me." Crimson paused, then spoke in a low voice, "Door's right behind you, I'll give you a two second head start."

Cinder turned and ran faster than she ever had in her life.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Ruby was woken from her sleep when she felt her bed jostle.

" _Yaaaaang!_ " she mumbled tiredly, "Just five more-"

She made to swat at her sister, only for her hand to touch something cold and smooth.

 _Oh yeah!_ she remembered, _Me and Crimson were under Beacon, and she told me the Maidens were real, and I went to go stand guard by the door, and...how did I get in here?..._ She pushed against the glass, but nothing gave no matter how much force she used. _OK Ruby, no need to lose your cool. I'm sure there's a latch or something on the inside…_

Then she remembered how much like coffins these things looked like from the outside, and that thought died a painful death.

She was about to start hyperventilating (Being trapped in an enclosed space barely bigger than your body? Not a pleasant experience for anyone.) when she noticed something outside: Crimson was slowly walking towards a woman in a red dress who was tossing fireballs at the doppelgänger from the future, swatting them away like it was nothing. She recognized the woman as Cinder, Emerald and Mercury's friend from Haven Academy, but...why was she attacking Crimson? The sultry Huntress didn't seem like a bad person from the short time Ruby interacted with her, though she'd always had this thought in the back of her mind that they'd met before under less favorable circumstances….

They it hit her: the Dust store robbery! She was the woman who fought with her and Mrs. Goodwitch from the Bullhead, that outfit was too similar for it to be a coincidence! She had to get out there and help Crimson!

She looked around a second time for something to open the coffin thing with, and once again found nothing, and brute force still accomplished diddly squat. Desperately, she started banging on the glass, claustrophobia beginning to kick in, when she felt something pressing into her lower back in an uncomfortable manner.

 _Ouch! What the...!?_ She reached back, quite a feat when taking her cramped quarters into consideration, and felt her harness for Crescent Rose. _...oh._ After a bit of struggle she managed to get her weapon out, shifting it enough that she could fire it at the glass. _I hope I don't regret this…!_

BANG! The shot sounded ten times louder than normal in the confined space, but it had the desired effect as the glass shattered from the bullet, so Ruby could put up with a little tinnitus.

She kicked at the glass again and this time there was some give. Scrunching up, she braces herself and pushed with all her might, more cracks webbing out from where her boots were pressed.

" _C'mon…!_ " she grunted, " _Just a little more…!_ "

With a sharp, piercing crack she broke through the glass, a few shards falling on top of her as she made the hole larger; eventually there was a big enough opening for the young Huntress to climb through.

 _Yes!_ She breathed a sigh of relief once she fully removed herself from the coffin. _Sweet freedom!_ She reached back in to grab Crescent Rose, then headed over to where Crimson was backing Cinder against a wall.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"What's the matter, Sugar Tits?" Crimson asked in a snide tone as she continued batting aside Cinder's desperate onslaught, slowly moving closer to the villainess, "Didn't expect to fight someone who was actually _stronger than you_?" She absently dodged out of the way of another fireball, "Missed again."

By now Cinder had given up trying to outthink the one eyed warrior woman, like she even had time to think with the _monster_ bearing down on her; for once in her life, all of her meticulous plans had nothing to help her with, and that feeling of confusion and uncertainty left her terrified.

"You know, I used to think you were impressive," Crimson said, "Back when you fought Glynda and me, I was almost scared of you. Granted, I was too young and naïve to fully appreciate how fucked I might have been if I didn't have backup, but seeing you for what you really are underneath all the glamour and the cocky smiles, you're just a sniveling little girl who saw something shiny." Moving so fast that the action almost seemed instantaneous, Crimson pulled out a pistol and shot Cinder in the ankle, causing the woman to cry out in pain. "I don't know about you, but for me, that felt _amazing!_ "

As Cinder dropped to the ground she tried desperately to think of a way to turn the tables in her favor again. Strangely, the pain in her leg helped focus her thoughts away from the deranged woman toying with her, giving her an invaluable moment to reorient herself.

"So," Crimson asked, "you got any last words before I make you regret ever being born?" She pulled a knife out of her boot and lazily twirled it around in her fingers.

"...well," Cinder managed, wincing as she shakily rose back to her feet, "do you believe in Destiny?"

Crimson scoffed. "Fuck no! Destiny can kiss my ass!"

"What a shame then," she chuckled, "because I do!" Without warning she threw another fireball at Crimson, who blocked it easily.

This time, however, the fireball burst apart into drops of molten embers that scattered on the floor around Crimson's feet. Cinder then made a fist, causing the Enders to erupt into plumes of fire that shot straight up, engulfing the silver eyed warrior woman. She poured every last ounce of energy she could into the fire, making it as hot as she could; she didn't want to leave a single trace of this woman left by the time she was done.

 _Yes...YES! BURN, you miserable interloper!_ she thought as she kept the flames going, cackling gleefully. _My destiny is assure; it's going to take more than some vengeful why can't I feel my foot?_

Suddenly her concentration was broken as she began leaning to the side, unable to control her fall. As she hit the ground she noticed that her left foot had been severed from her leg, lying on its side.

"W-wha...?" she gasped, staring at her bleeding stump, unable to process how that had even happened.

It was then that she heard what sounded like demonic chuckling. Pulling her attention away from the stump, Cinder looked up to find Crimson standing over her, still very much alive (albeit slightly singed), wearing a wicked grin on her face.

"So much for 'destiny'," Crimson sneered, "it can be a real bitch sometimes." She grabbed Cinder by the throat, hoisting her up to eye level, jamming a pistol in her mouth. She pulled back the hammer, "Be sure to apologize to Pyrrha."

Suddenly there was a gunshot from behind the women, and a bullet whizzed past Crimson's ear.

She whirled around, coming face to face with Ruby, her Crescent Rose aimed right at the older döppelganger's head.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"Crimson, what are you doing?" she asked, trying to process what she was seeing: her alternate self from the future was shoving a gun in Cinder's mouth, clearly intent on murdering her! She knew Crimson was a little unstable, but she never thought the woman would outright murder someone, even if Cinder was technically a criminal.

"...I'm saving the future." Crimson sighed, seeming to lose some of the hard edges her face had taken on. "I'm sorry you had to see this; why don't you go wait outside until I'm done, OK?" She didn't let go of Cinder's throat, or take the gun out of her mouth. "I should only be a minute."

Ruby stood her ground, unwavering. Crimson's glowing silver eye was frightening, but that didn't matter; she couldn't let her older self kill someone else in cold blood.

"You can't kill her," the young Huntress said resolutely, adjusting her gun so it was pointed directly at Crimson's face, "I won't let you."

Crimson stared at her for a moment, her expression unreadable; Cinder continued to whimper. "I don't expect you to understand, you're still just a kid. ...I'm just a fucking mess with nothing left to live for besides this, so kindly buzz off and let me complete my mission."

Bang! Ruby fired a round into her older counterpart's shoulder, which caused the woman to flinch.

" _The fuck_ , kid!"

"She needs to stand trial," Ruby insisted, clambering another round, "She should be punished for everything she's done, but we aren't the ones to decided that punishment."

For a moment Crimson said nothing. Then, slowly, she started laughing until her guffaws echoed throughout the chamber. She threw Cunder to the ground and held her side, doubling over.

"That's so rich!" she managed in between spurts of laughter, "Oh Ruby, you really don't have any idea…." Then she suddenly ceased her laughter and stood up straight, staring Ruby dead in the eye.

"That _thing_ over there-" Crimson pointed with her pistol. "-has done _so much more_ to us than you could possibly realize." She began listing points off in her fingers, "She sabotaged the Vytal Festival, turned Vale into a ruined hellhole, murdered Pyrrha right in front of me, drove Jaune to suicide because of that, basically caused all the robots in the world to go haywire and try to kill everyone…." She paused for a moment, her voice sounding like it would break at any time. "...and she didn't just kill Pyrrha either: Nora, Ren, Velvet, Sun, Blake, they're all dead. Weiss can't walk anymore, and our dad's nothing but a senile old man now." As she said all this, she kept walking closer towards Ruby, until she was standing directly in front of her. " _She fucking gutted Yang right in front of me while I was forced to watch, laughing while she did it._ "

Ruby gasped, Crescent Rose slipping from her grasp and clanging as it fell to the floor. She didn't want to believe what Crimson was telling her, but at the same she was too scared not to. She could see all the pain and anguish and loss and _rage_ on her future counterpart's face...and for a moment, she felt those same emotions well inside her. She wanted to punish Cinder _herself_ for everything she did, all the lives she'd taken! She imagined Cinder standing triumphantly over the bodies of all her friends….

Then she shook the image out of her head. Everyone was still alive; Cinder may have done a lot of bad things in her life, but whatever it was that Crimson went through clearly hadn't happened yet, of was even going to at all.

" _This_ Cinder hasn't done any of that stuff yet," she informed her older counterpart, trying not to sound as frightened as she felt. "I may be a bit naïve, and I'm sure you have every right to hate her...but I'm still not going to let you kill her." Reaching out, she grabbed Crimson's hand with the gun and pointed it right at her chest, "You're gonna have to shoot me first."

Internally, Ruby was sweating a moat. She was scared that Crimson would call her bluff, and given how brutal the woman was just being there was a good chance it would actually happen; she was banking on the fact that she and Crimson might be the same person, and that Crimson wouldn't take the chance of harming herself. It was an all or nothing gambit, one that Ruby was well aware could end horribly if it didn't work.

Fortunately luck was on her side; Crimson had apparently frozen after Ruby pointed the gun at herself, the glow fading from her eye. She looked shocked, clearly not expecting her younger self to do something this extreme. "...that's not fair," she murmured, "that's not fucking fair!" She grimaced, and Ruby could hear the woman's grip on the gun tighten, the weapon rattling as Crimson's hand shook. Crimson stayed like this for what felt like a minute before her face scrunched up, she frustratedly screamed "FUCK!", and pulled the gun away from Ruby, tossing it across the room.

"...you win, OK?" the time traveler sighed, staring at the ground, "I'm pissed as hell, but...I guess I'll just have to live with this." She sighed again, gesturing limply towards the doors, "I'll be along in a minute, I just...I need a moment to process this…."

Then Ruby embraced the one eyed doppelgänger, wrapping her arms around her. "Thanks," she whispered, feeling Crimson tense up slightly at the sudden contact. Then she bent down, picked up Crescent Rose, and headed out of the cavernous room.

 _She'll be alright,_ Ruby thought to herself as she stepped back into the light of the hallway. _Anyway, I better let everyone know we're OK; Yang's probably pulling her hair out wondering where I am._ She took out her Scroll and tried to call her team, only to be greeted by a "No Service" message when she turned the device on. _Dang it! Much be too far underground right now…._

Just then Crimson stormed out of the room and grabbed Ruby by the collar of her hood, dragging the young Huntress in training behind her.

"We're leaving," she said brusquely, her tone not leaving room for argument.

"Wait a minute- Crimson! What's the matter? How come- ...is that blood? Why is there...Crimson, what did you do? Hey! _What did you do, Crimson?!_ "

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"So that's...eight of us now?" RJ asked, staring at the newest doppelgänger that lay on one of the medical stretchers that had been set up. "What's next, a Super Saiyan Ruby?"

"I don't know what that is," Yang said, "but I like the sound of that!"

"Sh-she looks...d-different," Rosey pointed out. She, Blake and Weiss were all having their wounds treated in the adjacent beds, though Blake was still leaning over and making sure the young Faunus was alright. "N-not bad, just...n-none of us have c-clothes like that- Ow!"

"Sorry," Blake apologized, "Try to hold still, OK?"

"Mm-hmm!"

Sister narrowed her eyes, looking the new girl over. "You're right about that," she agreed, "She seems to be dressed in something from ancient Vacuo."

The newest doppelgänger was dressed in loose, baggy clothing appeared to be a few sizes too big, yet still stayed put. Her top and pants were fancifully detailed, with many swirls that made one think of vines. She wore a red cloak similar to Ruby's, Rosey's and Cress's, though that was the only similarity as far as her outfit went. She wore a red jeweled amulet around her neck, and she clutched a pointed stick in her hands.

"The doctors said she'll be fine, so I suppose the only question now is what kind of person she'll be when she wakes."

"Well I _hope_ that she's someone I can have an _intelligent_ conversation with," Rubin interjected, continuing when she noticed everyone glaring at her. "Hey give me a _break_ ; I only just _started_ being able to _tolerate_ you all!"

Fortunately for Rubin the oddly clad Ruby copy began to stir, taking the girls' attention away from the débutante.

" _Ahhhhh…,_ " the girl moaned, bringing a hand to her head. After a moment she opened her eyes, and they immediately went wide with fright upon seeing five identical copies of herself intermingled with 3/4 of Team RWBY. " _Irsa! Mhag sou inmah den?_ " she exclaimed. " _Kehs rhihl sala Ruvys son immen?_ "

Yang simply raised an eyebrow. "OK, did anyone else not understand that either, or am I just going crazy?" She quickly pointed between Weiss and Rubin, "Don't answer that."

"We can't really understand you," Cress said to the girl, speaking slowly, "Can you understand us?"

The girl just looked confused for a moment, then she slapped her forehead, hissing something under her breath that was probably self deprecating. Then, she closed her eyes and whispered something unintelligible while tracing lines from her ears and forehead to her mouth.

"I am sorry, is this now better?" she apologized. "I forgot that things work differently in this realm, and the Tongues spell does not last for very long." She propped herself up onto the cot and gave a slight bow. "My name is Ruvys Rosalia, I am a _Mhagus_ in training. Um...pardon me if this sounds insensitive, but, well...who are all of you, why do you look like I do, and are you all real?"

Cress was the first to speak up. "Oh! Well, nice to meet you! I'm Cress! As for your questions: me, Rosey, Sister, RJ, and Ice Queen over there-"

"HEY!" Rubin yelled.

"-are all the same person from different worlds or something- also, there's two more of us -and…." She gently poked "Ruvys", "You felt that, right? You couldn't do that if I wasn't real."

"What Cress means-" RJ interrupted, gently pulling the living weapon out of the new girl's personal space, "-is that we're as real as you are." She sat down on the other end of the stretcher, "By the way...you weren't those weird plant creatures terrorizing the city, were you?"

She nodded, beaming with joy. "That was the first time I have been able to perform such a complicated spell...but _Mhastina_ was right, I _was_ able to to do it if I just concentrated!"

Weiss, who'd been mostly silent until now, chose that moment to let her opinion be known. "Are you _insane_?!" she exploded, "Those things made a mess of downtown Vale, ruined the Vytal Festival parade, and don't even get me started on how much damage they and that huge vine tower caused when it fell over!"

Ruvys gasped at the tirade, looking shocked, then morose as Weiss's cutting words began to sink n. "But... _Mhastina_ Faell said that I would be helping make this place better…."

"Wait, 'Faell'?" Blake perked up hearing the name, "As in _Cinder Fall_ , the woman who tried to sabotage the Tournament?"

"Oh yeah!" Yang snapped her fingers, "She's why I had to fight that last fight in a cast!"

"You got that fighting Pyrrha; Cinder had nothing to do with it," Weiss retorted laconically.

"Hey, 'indirectly' is still close enough in my book."

"She's an anarchist," continued Blake, "why would you do what she says?"

Now Ruvys looked confused again. "...she's my _Mhastina_ ," she said, as though it were obvious, "I would be a bad student were I to not listen to her."

"How about you start from the beginning?" Sister suggested in a diplomatic manner. She gestured to the other doppelgängers, "All of us ended up in this 'realm' in different ways, but so far we haven't been able to figure out _why_ this happened in the first place, so perhaps knowing how you arrived here will help us figure that out."

Ruvys nodded contemplatively, then she looked sheepish, bopping her pointer fingers together.

"Um...there is a chance that I _might possibly_ be responsible for that…." She nervously shifted her position on the stretcher, her head drooping. "You see, it all started after my _Mhastina_ vanished without a trace one day…."

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Good news, everyone! I'm still alive! I know, it's been far too long since I've updated this one, especially after I teased the big, end all confrontation last time, but...let's just say I have a lot more free time on my hands to work on it now, so I'll actually be able to finish it up before too long and get to the bonus chapters I want to do. (Basically a bunch of one shots about each of the different doppelgängers- sans Crimson, though I may change my mind on that point -in their home dimensions, plus one or two other ideas I have floating around.)_

 _And speaking of that confrontation, boy howdy, that was a thing, wasn't it? Not really sure what to say about it except that 1. the way I wrote Crimson's Silver Eye Powers may not end up being accurate to the show itself (Volume 4 hype!), and 2. Crimson's actions will_ definitely _have lasting consequences on this world and its future._

 _As for the other big reveal of this chapter, we FINALLY learn the name of the final Ruby OC: Ruvys Rosalia, Mage in training! To celebrate, here's the long overdue character profile!_

 **Ruby OC name: Ruvys Rosalia**

 **Backstory: After the untimely death of her mother, Ruvys accepted a tutelage and Apprenticeship under her mother's friend and colleague Mhagus Cindella Faell in the ways of Magic. She inherited her mother's old familiar, Crescent Rose, easily forming a contract with it. Despite this she has trouble learning regular magic, particularly magic of the Alteration school. She lives with her Mhastina in a tower on the outskirts of Valia, though sometimes they travel into the kingdom to visit Beacon College to fellowship with other mages and their students. One day, Cindella apparently vanished without a trace, leaving Ruvys alone to fret over what happened; no trace of the Mhagus has been discovered before Ruvys somehow ended up in Cinder's warehouse.**

 **Quirks: hardworking, naive, somewhat gullible, eager to please, loyal to a fault.**

 _Anyway, I don't want to take up too much time with this A/N, so I'll leave y'all with the teaser that next time I'll reveal how all the different Rubies converged in the first place. Until next time, guys!_


	27. Questions answered

_It had been nearly a month since Mhagus Cindella Faell had abruptly vanished, still with no sign of her or any clue to how or why she disappeared at all; while not the first time a hole had been made in the ranks of the Mages Remnant, the circumstances surrounding the newly vacant seat were such that even those on the Council were baffled._

 _For those in Cindella's inner circle, they suspected the Mhagus must have uncovered or stumbled upon something sinister and stuck her neck out too far, and had been silenced to preserve the secrecy._

 _For the common people, they were worried that the other Mhagi would begin disappearing as well, leaving them defenseless against the monsters that roamed in the wilds outside the Kingdoms, and for the Royals they whined and complained that they had one less Mhagus at their beck and call._

 _For one Ruvys Rosalia, apprentice Mhagus, there wasn't a moment she didn't worry about her teacher and surrogate mother._

" _Why would she not tell me where she was going?" she asked to her friend as they sat in the foyer of Cindella's tower. "She knows I would follow her anywhere!"_

" _I would imagine that is precisely why she told you nothing," a dark girl named Bellia Black reasoned. She was apprenticed to a wizard named Oobleck, one of Cindella's close peers. "If you are right and she is indeed on some clandestine mission, I would not want those I care about involved in something so dangerous either."_

" _I concur," Wylles Schnee nodded. In contrast to Bella's dark presence and black hair, Wylles's hair was so stark white that it seemed to give off a light of its own. She was apprenticed to a wizard named Petrov Portus, a rotund man infamous for his large, bushy mustache. She reached over and patted Ruvys on the shoulder, "I am sure that wherever she is, she will be fine; Mhagi do not acquire seats on the Council by accident."_

 _The fourth member of their inner circle, a boisterous girl named Yazh Xiawon, who was apprenticed to Glenda Katharyn, nodded her head vigorously. "Just you wait, Little Sister, I will bet you that before the end of the week she is going to walk back through those doors carrying the heads of whoever was foolish enough to think they could best her!"_

 _Ruvys smiled, though it held none of its usual mirth and vigor. "Thank you everyone, it means a lot to me." She sighed, glancing up towards the loft, "Even so, the fact does not change that I miss her; we were supposed to travel to the Kaerns so I could practice my Summoning…."_

" _That_ is _one of your weakest schools," Wylles pointed out. "How you have managed to somehow turn every summoning you have attempted into a cause to scramble the Royal Guard continues to astound me!"_

" _I am able to summon Crescent Rose!" she protested._

" _True, but she is not a typical summon; whenever you try to summon anything using_ traditional _methods, you always managed to cause an explosion! You are worse than Yazh that way!"_

" _Hey!" Yazh exclaimed._

" _Stop picking on Ruvys!" Bellia scolded the pale apprentice, "She is already suffering enough worrying about her Mhastina, she does not need her best friends giving her grief as well." The rebuke silenced Wylles, who looked down at the floor._

 _She let out a sigh, "Yes, I see your point…."_

 _For the next few minutes none of them spoke, all unsure of what to say to lighten the mood; even the normally exuberant Yazh was strangely sullen._

 _Suddenly, Ruvys jumped to her feet, exclaiming "Of course!" as she raced up a staircase that circled the walls of the tower. The others tried to follow her and ask what she meant, but were stopped at the foot of the staircase when a barrier popped up, preventing them from going any further._

 _Ruvys burst into Cindella's room and immediately knelt beside a chest that contained magical items and spell components the sorceress deemed too advanced or dangerous for the young apprentice. She chanted the incantation meant to unlock the chest, lifting the lid open gingerly. She rooted around the contents, pushing passed liquid filled beakers, bits of various animals' hides and furs, nails and talons, and numerous trinkets and devices Ruvys could only vaguely guess at what they did until she found the thing she was looking for: a large, elongated crystal that appeared to contain the night sky within its structure. Instead of glowing, it appeared to suck light in around it, causing an aura of darkness to envelope it._

Perfect! _she thought to herself as she carried the ethereal crystal to a pedestal in the middle of the room,_ Why have I not thought of this before? _she wondered as she chanted a simple divination spell, tracing patterns around the crystal with her wand until it was completely encircled by a patchwork of intricate designs. Once the final lines were connected the construct shrunk and confirmed itself to the crystal, slowly dropping upward until they coalesced into a small, swirling portal floating above the pedestal._

" _Show me Mhastina!" Ruvys commanded, focusing all her energy and willpower and thoughts on making her Mhastina's location appear. At first it seemed to work, the cloudy aether in the portal, swirling and forming into what Ruvys thought was a map of some kind, but just as she was starting to make out defined shapes the image fell apart and the portal burst apart and dissolved into thin air._

 _Ruvys just stood there in shock, her mouth agape. She was so sure that would work, and for a moment it was working, but whether she just didn't have enough power or control or desire the fact remained that the spell has failed. And because she drained so much of her power for the spell, she did not have enough energy to attempt the spell again, much less anything greater than simple illusion magics._

 _In frustration she let out a cry of "Ksa!" and fired off an aimless blast of wild, destructive magic. She clearly did not care what was hit by the blast, and as a result it flew right towards the crystal._

 _However, instead of shattering it, the blast became refracted by the crystal; now there were multiple blasts of magic flying around the room, bouncing off the many mirrors Cindella kept._

Ksa! _she swore,_ I forgot about the mirrors!

 _Realizing her oversight, Ruvys attempted to gain control of the magics she inadvertently unleashed, but unfortunately her mind was too flustered to concentrate on the task and all she accomplished was flailing her wand around without purpose._

 _Eventually, somehow, all the different magics managed to get reflected back at the crystal, and this time there was enough magical energy to damage the crystal and cause it to crack_

 _Ruby froze in place, and silence reigned over the room as the young Mhagus waited for something to happen._

 _One heartbeat._

 _Then another._

 _Then two more._

 _She was about to move again when another fracture appeared on the crystal, followed by more and more until it shattered, exploding into pieces before those piece began hovering in mid air. Then, inexplicably, the crystal shards began floating back over the pedestal, only they did not reform into the whole crystal; they kept coalescing until those closest to the center of the pedestal started to blink from existence._

" _This does not bode well…," Ruvys whimpered_

 _As more and more shards continue to disappear the frequency with which think blinked out increased, until Ruvys could feel a pull on herself as well._

" _Oh no…!" she gasped as she felt herself start to slide across the floor, "No no no no no no no no no no!"_

 _She attempted to grab onto something so as to anchor herself down, but nothing sturdy enough was in within reach, and none of the spells she knew were simple enough to be used with what little magic she currently had left._

" _Yazh, Bellia, Wylles!" she called, remembering that her friends were still here, "Help me!" She was now grabbing at the floor, and as she did she chanted the secret phrase that would allow her friends to pass through the protective barrier and come to her aid._

 _Whether her efforts yielded any result she never knew, because the mysterious pull grew enough in strength that it was able to yank Ruvys away from her meager grip on the floor and suck her into whatever was caused the shards to vanish._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"...after that I tumbled through some manner of infinite expanse for what might have been days before I lost consciousness," Ruvys explained, fiddling with her wand as the other doppelgängers and a majority of Team RWBY (minus their eponymous team leader) listened, "When once I awoke from my slumber I found myself in some sort of container made of a strange material, and, well…." She trailed off, "Again, I apologize deeply for my actions, I truly did not think-"

"Hah!" Rubin scoffed.

"-that my _Mhastina_ could possibly be aligned with evil in this realm."

"It's quite alright," comforted Sister, "nobody's been seriously hurt by what you did."

"Which just defies _all_ probability!" RJ interjected. "Though if you want my opinion, I wouldn't go around saying you were in league with a known terrorist. Just a thought."

"Why _did_ you go along with her?" Blake asked, looking up from her ministrations on Rosey, "I wasn't around her very often, but there was always something about her that struck me as off."

Ruvys looked downward, letting her wand hang loosely in her hand. "I do not know," she said, "...I suppose that I just wanted to see my _Mhastina_ again so badly that I did not care what she would be like so long as she was there." She let out a defeated sigh, "You must think me as an imbecile and a dunce for being so naïve…."

Cress, who'd been mostly silent since getting pulled off the young mage, came forward again and wrapped her in a hug.

"Don't worry about it," she said cheerfully, "I'm _much_ more of a doofus you are! I mean, I wasn't even able to fully transform myself until today! Plus I always fall for Ember's pranks, and I don't always understand the big words Gambol uses, and Myrty's always yelling at me for _something_ I did-"

"I think what Cress is trying to say," RJ interjected, "is that none of us blame you for feeling the way you did." Cress nodded emphatically at this. "It's not like we're perfect or anything either. For example, I'm not really all that brave in a dangerous situation, Rosey's still a little shy-"

"Mhmm," Rosey nodded meekly.

"Cress here's a tad on the 'special' side-"

"Aw, thanks RJ!" Cress beamed, apparently ignorant of the slight against her intelligence.

"Sister's got a massive crush on that monkey Faunus with the rocking bod-"

" _Who told you!?_ the elder doppelgänger exclaimed, before turning red with embarrassment. "I-I mean, n-no I don't!"

"And Rubin's a _massive_ c-"

"If you even _finish_ that sentence, I'm _going_ to teach you what a 'dangerous situation' _really_ is…!" Rubin growled, her hand going to Eidlerote and her eyes practically shooting lasers at RJ.

"Eep!" the teenager squeaked before continuing. "...point is, no one's perfect. Eh heh heh heh…." She suddenly wished she had a towel handy.

"I...believe that I see your point," Ruvys said after a short but awkward silence, her frown giving way for a demure smile. "In that case, I shall do my best to not make the same mistake again!" she resolved, "And as an apology, I shall work my hardest to return you all to your native realms! By the Pen of the Almighty Creator, I will not rest for even a moment before-!"

At that point Yang's Scroll rang, causing the newest doppelgänger to jump in fright.

"It's Ruby!" the blonde exclaimed, quickly hitting the Call Answer button. "Rubes, where are you? You're not hurt, are you?"

" _I'm fine, Yang,_ " she said on the other end of the line. " _What about you guys? Last I saw, some giant rose thing sprouted up in the middle of the city! What was even up with that?_ " She paused for a moment. " _...you're all still…_ alive _, right?_ "

"Yeah, we're all still kicking," Yang assured her sister, "...well, except for Mercury, if you know what I'm saying." She waited a beat and continued, "He's a little _Yanged up_ at the moment!"

She could practically _feel_ her little sister's eyes roll.

"Anyway, what about you? You went off to look for Crimson and never came back."

" _Oh._ _Well, we...headed back up to Beacon,_ " she explained hesitantly, " _And...stuff happened…. Sorry, but I don't really wanna talk about it._ "

Yang could tell from her sister's tone that whatever happened at the school had shaken Ruby up. "You mean, like, on the call?"

" _At all,_ " Ruby clarified. Yang could hear her sigh on the other end of the call. " _Anyway, we're on our way back now, where're you guys?_ "

"We're at the medical pavilion they set up," she informed, "Blake, Weiss and Rosey got a little scratched up, but they'll be fine."

" _OK, thanks. ...and Yang?_ "

"Yeah, Sis?"

" _...I'm glad you're all alright._ " And with that Ruby hung up.

Yang put her Scroll away and let out a sigh before putting on her usual cheeky smile; the newest double of her sister was currently trying to examine Cress, and the living weapon fidgeted uncomfortably, clearly unsure how to react to her own personal space getting invaded.

 _I'm sure Rubes'll be fine_ , she thought, chuckling when Cress squeaked as Ruvys began to poke her experimentally, _she usually is._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Emerald grunted as she was roughly tossed into the back of a police van. She'd been hiding out at the warehouse when a cadre of Atlas soldiers lead by a trio of Huntsmen who swiftly overpowered the White Fang still there with her, leaving her with no choice but to surrender; her Semblance didn't work on so many people at once, and it didn't help that she relied on it more often than not to stay _out_ of trouble in the first place.

Needless to say, she was a bit annoyed by the whole situation.

"Oh hey Em!" Mercury said, seated next to where she'd been tossed; he was also handcuffed like she was, and was missing his artificial legs. Despite this he still wore his usual, annoying, chip on his shoulder grin, "I was wondering when you'd get here; you almost missed the party!"

"Shove it!" she snapped, getting to her feet, "I'm not in the mood for your shit right now."

Mercury clicked his tongue sorrowfully. "That's a real shame, you know? Cuz I've only had Neo to talk with-" he jerked his head towards the diminutive criminal next to him, who had a gag over her mouth in addition to the normal restraints "-since they picked me up, and she just _has not_ let me get a word in edgewise."

Neo just gave the silver haired boy a shove, causing him him to topple to the side; Emerald actually smirked a little at that.

"So did a bunch of soldiers burst in on you as well?" she asked, to which Neo begrudgingly nodded; she already heard some of the soldiers talk about finding Adam nearly dead from blood loss, but nothing about her other comrades. "Yeah, me too." She turned back to Mercury, "What about you, Mr. Assassin?"

"The dumb blonde got the better of me somehow," he said, attempting to right himself. "That bitch should have been easy prey, how the hell did she turn that around on me?"

" _Maybe it was something you said,"_ the greenette whispered under her breath, though still visibly rolling her eyes. "Whatever, we're all caught, and the whole plan is boned!" She flopped back against the walls of the truck and let out a massive sigh. "I should have just filched Cinder for all she had and went the other way…."

By now Mercury had picked himself up. "This won't be so bad," he mused," I mean, I'm pretty sure it's the law or something that they have to take good care of us in prison: plenty of exercise, three square meals a day, on site medical care... _conjugal visits_."

Emerald grimaced, "I'd tell you to blow me, but I'm afraid you might think I was serious."

"Well screw you too, 'bestie'." He turned to Neo, "How about it, Short Stuff, up for a little rendezvous while we're in the clink? Don't worry, your mascara wearing sugar daddy doesn't need to know."

Neo smiled at this, at least as much as she could using only her eyes since the gag sort of in the way of her mouth. She leaned forward seductively, beckoning him to come closer. Mercury eagerly obliged, scooting over to the petite woman and waiting for her to some kind of confirm-

She head butted him right in the face.

Without warning.

"OW!" he cried, "What the hell was that-?"

She also shoved him over again for good measure.

Needless to say, Emerald was in stitches.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _And their you have it, folks: Ruvys' backstory,_ and _the reason why all these different versions of Ruby are appearing at all. (Not to mention an excellent example of the "red herring" device; seriously, when did I ever explicitly say the Team's drunken escapades were to blame for this?) I know it's a bit thin, but I'll have the characters speculate about that in the upcoming chapters to give it some more substance._

 _But hey, all the doppelgängers are present, the crisis has been dealt with, and the surviving baddies are in jail! Now all that's left is to tie up loose ends and ultimately send everyone back where they came from, while maybe having a bit more fun before I do._

 _And on a related note, RWBY Vol.4 is finally out! First impressions are promising, and I can't wait to see what's in store for the characters we've come to know and love! (This may be slightly spoilery, but the end of episode 2? So many feels, so many_ delicious _tears from the fans!)_

 _But getting back on track, I'm going to start wrapping things up now, because I really want to get to the extra chapter for all the doppelgängers: basically little snippets from each of their lives either before or after the great OC convergence. The only caveat for these is that Canon!Ruby isn't getting a chapter, because she's the main character of the show and I don't feel like delving into that too much until Rooster Teeth decides to elaborate on that; the other OC's are still fair game, so, hopefully, this will be an interesting look into their lives._

 _Also, consider checking out my live streams on Twitch; just search for "the_layman" and look for the picture of a plushy Yang._

 _Anyway, next time we'll check in with all the side characters (which may or may not include some who've been mentioned before, but not really seen up til now)._


	28. Pleasant aftermath?

_Ok, let's check in with everyone and see how they're unwinding after the "plantasteophe"._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Later that day..._

"So...that's your field report, then?" General Ironwood asked Crimson, who sat across from him at Ozpin's desk. She was leaning back in her chair, her boots resting on top of the polished surface, and was liberally sampling from a large bottle of high proof alcohol she'd brought with her.

"...that's right," she said after taking a lengthy swig of the spirit, "And that's the story I'm sticking with."

The General leaned over the desk, stating intently at the Huntress from the future. "So you're saying that you took an unauthorized civilian into one of the most secure and secret facilities on the planet, forgetting for a moment that she was your younger self, fully knowing that you were bringing her into certain danger."

"Yup!" Crimson said, popping the P sound.

"And you knocked her unconscious, further endangering Miss Rose-"

"I put her in that coffin thingy," she protested, "she woulda been fine!"

" _Not to mention_ tampering with extremely delicate technology- and it's a miracle none of it was seriously damaged throughout all this -brutalizing a helpless woman, and executing her without her standing trial first. Have I left anything out?"

Crimson shook her head. "No, that's pretty much everything important." She took another swig from her bottle, "...I'm not apologizing, by the way."

Ironwood sighed and hung his head, pinching the bridge of his nose. He'd never admit it, but he _really_ wanted to confiscate Crimson's bottle for himself right now.

"Was it really necessary to go that far?" Ozpin asked, trying to play the ombudsman.

"Uh... _doi_!" she said, looking slightly confused. "Cinder bad, cause problem, me make problem go bye-bye. Pretty cut and dry if you ask me."

"She could have given us information about her cabal!" the general exploded, slamming his right hand down on Ozpin's desk before listing of points on his left, "We barely have any information on her _or_ her organization, and now we never will, not unless one of her underlings decides to be cooperative. And don't even get me started on how uncooperative Adam Taurus is going to be rounding up the rest of the White Fang-!"

"James." Ozpin got up from his chair and placed a hand on Ironwood's shoulder. His tone was calm, but somehow it managed to convey a sense of authority that normally belonged to someone far older than the Headmaster looked.

Reluctantly, Ironwood stepped back, taking out his flask and partaking in a nice, long guzzle from it.

"I understand that, sometimes, a Huntress needs to make a judgment call in the field," Ozpin said, addressing Crimson, "but the fact remains that you went far beyond what was necessary to subdue Cinder Fall, and that can't be ignored." He sat back down, resting his elbows on the desk, "Therefore, until such time as either I deem fit, or you manage to find a way to return to your own time, you are confined to the grounds of Beacon Academy, without access to your combat arsenal."

"Eh," Crimson shrugged, "I can live with-"

"And you are forbidden from all alcohol as well," he added, his tone indicating that there was _absolutely_ no room for argument.

Crimson's mouth hung open in abject shock, her good eye twitching spasmodically.

"...fuck you," she hissed eventually, giving Ozpin the dirtiest of glares; the headmaster said nothing, his expression unreadable. "...you talked to my younger self already, didn't you?"

He nodded.

Crimson let out an exhausted sigh. "Fine, you win," she said, finishing off her bottle. Then she tossed it to Ironwood, who fumbled for a moment as he caught it, and proceeded to disarm herself, a small mountain of weapons growing on the desk. If Ozpin was impressed by this at all, he didn't show it; Ironwood's reaction was similarly low key, merely raising an eyebrow at the pile.

"If anyone needs me, I'll be in the nearest arena room," she said, finally adding her Crescent Rose to the top of the pile, "I need to break something." And with that she turned and headed for the elevator, not even bothering to turn around as the doors closed behind her.

"She should be locked up," Ironwood said after a while, "We don't need a vigilante running around free, especially one who doesn't comprehend what 'restraint' is."

Ozpin exhaled. "I'm not thrilled at the prospect of that either, James, but remember that Miss Thorne did alert us to the threat at the CCT tower before going off to confront Cinder, which leads me to believe that underneath all the bravado there's still some of the young girl I know who just wants to do good." He paused, grabbing the future Crescent Rose from the pile on his desk, "Besides, she's been a soldier for years; she'll follow her order, regardless if she agrees with them or not. I'm sure know what I mean, right?"

Ironwood hated it when Ozpin was right. He still respected the man and would follow him to the ends of the earth if need be, but sometimes he could be too sentimental for his own good.

He gave a nod, "I'll trust your judgement on this," he said, "but forgive me if I don't want to take any chances; I want to assign one of my students to keep an eye on her."

Ozpin looked apprehensive at the suggestion, his brow furrowing. "Judging by the reports I've heard of Miss Thorne's fighting prowess, I'm not sure if even you or Glynda could match her, much less a student."

"I'm aware, Ozpin; they would be under strict orders not to engage her in combat, merely observe her behavior and report back to me." The general keyed up a dossier on his Scroll and handed it to Ozpin. "Besides, her father feels she should be interacting with other students more often."

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"So...Ruvys," RJ said, getting the attention of the newest doppelgänger. They, Cress, and Ruby were all seated around a table in the Beacon library, engrossed in a game of Remnant: The Game, "can I ask you something?"

"You may ask me whatever you wish," the young mage said, playing a card from her hand, "though I do not know if I will be able to answer them, depending on would you may ask."

"...OK," the teen responded, "so then how does your magic work?"

Ruby played a card and nodded. "Yeah, I was wondering that too." She quickly turned to Cress and announced "By the way, my Fearless Soldiers are attacking your Mistral Sanctuaries."

While Cress dealt with the attack on her western front, RJ continued. "Because maybe I'm stupid, but I don't get how breaking a scrying crystal causes all of us to get transported here." She hurriedly added "Not that I'm saying you're lying or anything, I'm just more of a technology girl than a magical one; I'm _still_ trying to wrap my mind around Aura! ...and I play 'Successful Infiltrator', which allows me to take a card from your hand."

Ruvys nodded and held her hand out to RJ, doing her best to provide the young tomboy with an answer. "Well, magic is inherently a wild, unpredictable force; it requires a great amount of time to learn how to control it properly, though there are those who are considered prodigious in their mastery of the craft." Her hand reflexively went to her amulet, "People have said that _I_ am such a _Mhagus_ , but they have clearly not attended any of my reviews with _Mhastina_."

"Hey, I already told you that everyone's not perfect, so don't keep beating yourself up about it!" RJ briefly shuffled her hand before placing a card face down on the table in front of her. "I end my turn."

"...I will consider it."

"So...if magic is so unpredictable, how'd you manage to transport us all here?" Cress asked.

"Well, I have been thinking on that, and I have come to the conclusion that it is _because_ magic is unpredictable that we have been drawn to this realm."

Ruby, RJ and Cress all stared at Ruvys in confusion, little question marks floating above their heads.

"...wat?" Cress asked.

"I am not entirely sure how all of the intricacies function," she continued, "but when I unleashed that blast of Destructive magic, I did so reflexively, and thus it was released Wild; it must have taken the properties of the mirrors with which it came in contact, and that somehow mixed with the strange magics the crystal possessed, which somehow summoned you all from your respective realms." She paused for a moment, looking slightly sheepish. "I fear the theory is not entirely sound, but I cannot deduce anything more without further study of _Mhastina Sanctum_."

"That... _kinda_ makes sense," Ruby said, "I mean, not really, but it's better than nothing, I guess." She rolled her dice and hissed "Dang it!" as the result came up in Cress's favor.

"...so does that mean you know how to send us all back?" RJ asked. "Don't get me wrong, it's been fun hanging out with a buncha different versions of me, but I _do_ want to see my family again at some point. I'm also attacking you with my Grimm Legions, by the way."

Ruvys looked mildly shocked for a moment, then she turned over a card on her side of the table. "I believe this card deflects any damage you deal back on yourself, correct?"

RJ's mouth hung open.

"I will need materials with which to perform the spell that I do not believe exist in this present realm," the young mage explained, ignoring RJ's flabbergasted expression, "and even if all of the materials I need can be acquired, I am not certain that I have the power to attempt such a complex incantation."

"Why don't we go ask Ozpin later if he can help?" Ruby suggested. "He's probably got a bunch of connections being the Headmaster of Beacon, so he could probably find the things you need." She suddenly snapped her fingers, "Oh! And Weiss is _super_ rich, so we won't have to worry about money either!"

"Are you gonna close your mouth, RJ?" Cress asked, leaning over towards the tomboy teenager, "You could accidentally swallow a fly if you're not careful."

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Blake, Weiss, Yang, Rosey, Rubin and Sister were all sitting in RWBY's room, taking it easy; with three of them still sporting injuries from the fight, they all agreed the rest was the best course of action for the moment.

"I'm f-fine!" Rosey protested as Blake fussed about her, making sure the young Faunus had reapplied her bandages correctly. "I'm n-not b-bleeding anymore!"

Blake apparently remained unconvinced. "Are you sure?" she asked, "The Doctor said you barely have any Aura compared the rest of us, do you know what they means?" She didn't wait for the girl to respond before continuing, "It means you won't heal as quickly as the rest of us, so I need to make sure you didn't reopen your wound by accident." Rosey grimaced, but didn't squirm as much.

"You know, Blakey" Yang remarked, looking down from her bunk, "if I didn't know any better, I'd say you were acting like the poor kid's mother right now."

Blake's bow twitched a little.

Weiss rubbed her chin, "Now that you mention it, that _does_ explain why she's been doting on Rosey the past couple days…."

"Indeed…," Sister mused. "It actually reminds me of how my mother is with Yang sometimes…."

Blake's bow seemed to go flat against her head.

"So what if I am?" she asked without looking away from her task, "Someone needs to make sure Rosey heals properly, so why can't it be me?"

Yang put a hand up defensively, "Hey, I'm just making an observation."

"Like, just _admit_ it already!" Rubin chimed in. The débutante had been reading one of Blake's books on Weiss's bunk, keeping mostly to herself up to this point, "We all _know_ you treat her like your daughter, so just save us the _trouble_ of hearing you _deny_ it." She turned the page she was reading, gasped ("Eep!"), and tossed it to the floor, a haunted look on her face. "...and how can you _read_ such… _filth_?"

"Wh-what does she m-mean?" Rosey asked, looking at Blake inquisitively.

"Nothing!" Blake answered a bit too quickly, "I'll explain when you're older."

The other girls all raised an eyebrow at RWBY's resident Faunus. (Save for Rubin, who was still busy processing what she'd just read.)

"Suit yourself," Weiss shrugged, "it's none of our business you want to adopt her or whatever."

If Blake wasn't showing signs of embarrassment before, she certainly was now. Adopt Rosey? She wasn't even out of her first year at Beacon, she wasn't ready to take responsibility for raising someone else! Not to mention that Rosey was only a couple years younger than her at most, and technically belonged back in her own world...but was loath to admit that she wouldn't mind caring for the girl if it turned out Ruvys couldn't send all the doppelgängers back.

"I n-never said anything about adoption!" she stammered, unable to meet any of their gazes, "Y-You're reading too much into this!"

Rosey's eyes began to glisten, and her lower lip trembled; quite literally, and for all intents and purposes, she looked like a sad puppy right now, and Blake had to fight with every ounce of her willpower not to break down and hold the girl in a loving embrace and never let go.

Fortunately for her, Weiss's Scroll buzzed, breaking the awkward tension that grew after the heiress's comment.

"It's Ruby," she stated, answering the call. She headed out of the room, "Hey, what's up? ...hang on, you want _what_?!"

Sister tilted her head curiously. "I wonder what that's about?"

"Knowing Rubes, probably some crazy scheme or other." Yang hopped down from her bunk and also headed for the door, "I'ma go get some snacks, anyone want anything?"

"I'm good for now," Sister said, glancing over at the traumatized Rubin, "though I'm not sure about Rubin…."

The Schnee like doppelgänger was holding her knees while rocking back and forth, muttering something about katanas under her breath.

"W-will she b-be alright?" Rosey asked, to which Sister shrugged.

"Perhaps if she had a stimuli of some kind to snap her out of her current state?" she posited.

Yang grinned and rammed a fist into her hand. "How about a good bop to the head?"

Sister narrowed her eyes at the blonde, "I meant something like smelling salts."

"Hmph, you're no fun…."

" _NO! I am_ not _going to just hand you over a million Lien to buy something you don't even know exists yet!"_ came from outside the room.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Well, little of column A, little of column B. Still, we'll see how things play out until Ruvys gets around to doing that counterspell. (Maybe someone show tell Ruby to stop distracting the poor girl and let her concentrate?)_

 _But anyway, now the story is going to start wrapping itself up, (both because this was how I planned for things to happen and I_ really _want to get to each of the character bonus chapters!), so I guess start saying goodbye to these OCs? I dunno, I'll think of a sappier goodbye monologue when the actual last chapter comes around. Regardless, with this story under my belt I can focus on my other two concurrent fics "Knight of Conquests" and "How Yang got her Groove back", and maybe start working on another idea I've been toying around with for a while._

 _Fans of Pyrrha? Y'all're gonna love it!_

 _Anywho, next time I think we'll bring in more of the RWBY supporting cast I've been strangely neglecting up to now. Plus, I'm sure you're all curious what Team JNPR's been up to during all this, right?_


	29. An exhibition match

_So this chapter is kinda padding, but it should still be pretty fun regardless. (And it's something of a buffer before what's going to happen next chapter.)_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"Whoa!" Nora exclaimed as she laid eyes on the seven different copies of Ruby standing in her sister Team's dorm room; her mouth hung open and her eyes darted from doppelgänger to doppelgänger in awe. "...that's _awesome!_ I wish I had a bunch of Me's to play with!"

"Yeah…," Jaune said, "I think we're gonna pass on that; one of you is more than enough."

"Agreed…." Ren nodded gratefully, standing behind his leader. Nora pouted at this.

"So...you're all different versions of Ruby, correct?" Pyrrha spoke up in an effort to break the ice.

"Yep!" Ruby said, speaking for the group. She pointed them out in turn, "That's Rosey, RJ, Sister, Cress, Rubin, Crimson, and Ruvys." They all waved. (Rubin begrudgingly so.)

Jaune waved back. "Nice to meet you!" Then he leaned in conspiratorially to Ruby and whispered "There aren't any more of you, are there?"

"...nope! Just them," she whispered back.

"I th-think we're all th-there is," Rosey said, poking her fingers together, "A-At least, n-no one else has showed up yet…"

Blake shot Jaune an icy glare. "She has really good hearing like I do."

Jaune chuckled nervously and backed up behind Pyrrha.

"So where've you guys been all this time?" Yang wondered, "We haven't seen you since the night of the tournament."

"We were on an assignment with Dr. Oobleck," Ren answered; Nora, Pyrrha and Jaune had started talking with RJ, Sister, and Cress respectively, "We were helping him track down the whereabouts of Emerald and Mercury's group; we only just got back as the Finale Parade was starting."

"Did you have to fight any of those plant things?" Weiss asked. She noticed Blake take Rosey aside and talk in hushed tones, but she respected her friend's privacy too much to eavesdrop. Besides, she was more curious about what JNPR had been up to.

"A couple of them, we didn't actually see very many before things died down." He glanced over at the group of copies, "Were one of them responsible?"

Weiss nodded. "The one that looks like she's from ancient Vacuo," she explained, pointed at Ruvys, "Apparently she was tricked into summoning those things." She shook her head, "I _still_ can't believe nobody was seriously injured because of all that!"

"No, that actually makes sense," Yang countered. "I mean look at her! Do you really think _she's_ capable of hurting someone _on purpose_?"

Ruvys was currently trying to demonstrate her magic for an enraptured JNP, only for her to accidentally singe Jaune with her display and start fretting over him in anguish.

"...fair point," Weiss sighed.

"So what did you guys do while we were gone?" he asked, to which Yang grinned eagerly.

"Dude, let me tell you what happened!..."

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

An hour or so later the group found themselves in the cafeteria for dinner. Team JNPR was still with them, chatting it up with all the doppelgängers. Team RWBY let them be for the most part, happy to leave the seven copies to their own devices for the time being.

"You know," Yang mused, watching RJ and Jaune talk animatedly about comic books, "I'm gonna miss them when they're gone; I've gotten kinda used to a bunch of my little sister running around…." She absently reached over and ruffled Ruby's hair, to which the young Huntress tried to bat the hand away.

"Even Rubin?" Blake asked.

"...eh, maybe I'll miss her a little less than the others."

"I have to admit, it'll certainly be different without the lot of them around," said Weiss. "It was...an interesting experience, to say the least."

"Even with RJ schooling you at games all the time?" Ruby asked, to which the heiress huffed indignantly and turned up her nose.

"Hmph! That little _brat_ is going to get hers one day!" She then made a point of conspicuously checking her Scroll; her partner chuckled at this.

Blake cracked a smile (it was always fun to watch the Ice Queen crack a little) and glanced over at the doppelgängers; Crimson was currently the center of attention, being in the middle of arm wrestling with Nora. Ruvys and Cress were acting as the Future Warrior's cheerleaders, while Rubin and RJ (and Jaune) chose to support Nora in the contest. The eldest of the doppelgängers appeared to be winning, since she was just sitting still while Nora struggled to get her arm to move even a fraction of an inch. Sister was having a conversation off to the side with Pyrrha and Ren, mostly leaving the others to their own devices while she entertained the two with stories of her and her Yang's time at Beacon.

And all the while Rosey sat by herself, reading one of the comic books Blake checked out of the library the other day, nibbling on a sandwich.

Blake thought back to when they were getting treated after their fight with Adam. The doctor had pulled her aside then, saying she needed to ask her some questions about Rosey.

" _What_ about _Rosey?" she asked, suspicion cultivated by her time in the White Fang setting her nerves on edge._

" _Nothing invasive, I promise you," the doctor assured her, dropping her stethoscope around her neck, "just...I'm trying to get a more accurate picture of her medical history."_

 _Blake relaxed a little bit, and let the woman continue._

" _You see, in addition to treating the wound in her torso, I needed to give her a higher than normal dose of immune boosters- and I don't mean a small amount either -so I was hoping you could help me understand why her immune system is virtually nonexistent."_

 _Blake wasn't as surprised by this news as she probably should have been; giving Rosey's history it made an uncomfortable amount of sense._

" _You didn't ask her herself?" She wondered._

 _The doctor shook her head sadly. "I did, but she's shy, so she didn't really say much to me; I was hoping she would have told you or your friends more."_

Should I tell her Rosey's from a different world? _she pondered. At the risk of having a double standard she thought explaining things fully was for the best, but at the same time she didn't want to turn the young Faunus into a science experiment or a freak show spectacle. She'd made herself responsible for Rosey, and now she was starting to realize just what that responsibility meant._

" _She...grew up in poverty," Blake explained, "she didn't live in a good part of the world, and Faunus were treated worse than second class citizens there. And, unfortunately, she eventually has to go back there."_

" _...I see," the doctor said, nodding slowly, "that's what I was afraid of."_

 _This tripped the switch for Blake's anxiety something fierce._

" _...what do you mean?" she asked hesitantly._

" _She needs continual treatment for at least a month to get her immune system back to healthy levels; if the conditions in her home are as bad as you say, then she'll regress to where she was at before you brought her here. Frankly, I'm surprised she wasn't already carrying a dozen communicable diseases!"_

 _She didn't say so out loud, but Blake was also surprised the young Faunus hadn't caught anything since turning up here either._

" _I can make her a care package to take back with her that should help the treatment to take, but if you can convince her to stay then I encourage you to do so."_

"-Blake! Hey, Blake!" Yang called, snapping her out of her thoughts, "What's the matter, Partner? Cat got your-"

"They'll never find your body," she snapped, more a reflex to Yang's joke than anything else, "...sorry, I was distracted. What's up?"

"Jaune made some offhand comment about Ruvys' fighting prowess, so she's gonna give us a little demonstration," the blonde explained, jerking her finger at the doors, "Wanna watch?"

Blake looked around and saw that the others had already headed off to wherever the demonstration was going to happen; it was only her, Yang, a few other scattered students, and Rosey of all people left in the cafeteria now. However, she was actually glad for Rosey's presence.

"I'll pass," she informed her blonde friend, "there's something I need to do."

Yang shrugged ("Eh, suit yourself.") and headed for the doors, waving back to her assigned partner as she left.

Now in her own, Blake sighed and stood up. _Well, no sense in putting it off,_ she thought, before heading over to the Faunus doppelgänger.

"Hey, Rosey?"

Rosey started slightly, smiling once she realized who was speaking. "Oh, B-Blake!" She held up her sandwich, "D-do you want some?"

"No, you keep it," she gently pushed her arm back down, sitting firmly next to the young girl, "Actually, there's something I wanted to talk about with you…."

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"The hell did you _do_ in here?" RJ asked as she stared at the sorry state of the sparring arena Crimson lead them to. "...actually, on second thought, I don't wanna know."

"It was just a little something to work off the leftover adrenaline from the fighting yesterday," the warrior explained dismissively, "But anyway, you guys can pretty much go hog wild in here."

The members of JNPR all marveled at the sheer destruction in display; the room looked more like the ruins in the Emerald Forest than a proper training facility.

"Whoa…!" exclaimed Nora, her eyes sparkling with glee, "You _gotta_ teach me how to-!"

" _No_ ," Ren said immediately, grabbing his redheaded partner by the ear, "you're bad enough as it is."

"U-um, pardon me, but there is a question I have," Ruvys spoke up, "Will I have to perform on my own, or will one of you act as my opponent?"

RJ immediately threw her hands up in defeat. "Not me! I can't fight for beans compared to everyone else, and I'm not too keen on picking the short straw in a William Tell routine."

"Same, only I'll probably break you in half by accident," Crimson added.

Sister and Pyrrha stepped forward in unison, stating "I will assist-" before realizing the other spoke, which quickly turned into a humility contest when they started apologizing. (Cress's head swiveled back and forth between the two overly polite young women.)

"Um," Ruby finally spoke up, "I guess I'll-"

" _I'll_ do it," interjected Rubin, who stepped into front of the native Huntress in training, "I _may_ as well, considering I'm the _best_ fighter here."

"Pfft, right!" Crimson chuckles, "And _how_ many times have you been proven wrong about that again?"

Rubin merely turned her nose up and trotted into the center of the wreckage, classily flipping Crimson the bird. Ruby, meanwhile, had latched herself into Weiss's leg in an overly dramatic display of sorrow and grief, the heiress trying to shake her off with abysmal results.

"This will be acceptable," Ruvys decided, taking out her wand and making her way across from the petulant débutante. "I shall begin as soon as you declare your readiness."

Rubin drew Eidlerote and dropped into her usual stance. " _Don't_ hold back,"

Ruvys nodded and pointed her wand at Rubin. " _Freros!_ " she shouted, and immediately a crackling ball of flames formed at the tip of the wand, before flying directly at Rubin.

The débutante quickly leaned out of the way and lunged at the young mage, her sword aimed at Ruvys' shoulder; she wasn't trying to kill the newest doppelgänger, of course, just keep her on her toes. After all, she couldn't very well lose, even if this was just a friendly exhibition.

Fortunately the Mage in training was alert enough to dodge out of the way of Rubin's strike and launch another fireball at her, which she somehow managed to swat aside.

"Not bad," Rubin praised, "but _don't_ get too cocky; show me how you fight up close!" She charged, preparing to swing Eidlerote in a slash. Ruvys tried to lean out of the way, but she overbalanced and fell on her back.

"You ok?" Cress asked as the magical doppelgänger woozily picked herself up.

"I will be fine…," she said, shaking her head a little, "I do not have much occasion to engage in the traditional, non-magical combat." She dusted herself off, "Please give me a moment to prepare." Rubin tapped her foot impatiently, but allowed the the Mage to make herself ready.

After inhaling a breath, Ruvys began chanting under her breath in some otherworldly sounding language, the jewel in her amulet glowing as she cast a hand at the floor in front of her. Almost immediately glowing designs began rising from the floor, first in the shape of a cylinder before molding itself into a feminine, humanoid shape.

Then the light faded, leaving a figure made of vines and sticks standing there; it stood just a little taller than Ruvys, and it had rose petals in place of hair.

"Whoa…!" Cress exclaimed, "You've got an imaginary friend!"

"Crescent Rose is not imaginary," Ruvys explained to the living weapon, giving her summon a hug, "she is as real as we all are!" Then she composed herself and back up a bit, turning her attention back to Rubin, "I will begin once you have made yourself ready."

"Um, I've been _ready_ since started!" she retorted, tapping her foot impatiently, "If this were a real _fight_ , you would've _already_ been-"

" _Crescata Rosa, fo'Mah's!_ "

Without waiting for the petulant débutante to finish Ruvys thrust her wand at Rubin and shouted a command none of the gathered Huntsmen and doppelgängers could understand, and the dryad like summon launched itself forward, gliding over the floor like it was skating. Gracefully, it slid up Rubin and swiped at her, it's hands talon like claws.

A glyph appeared between the floral creature and the débutante, repelling the attack than a second before it landed. A good thing too, or else Rubin would've been sporting a scar similar to Weiss's.

 _This_ thing's _fast!_ she thought as she hurried to dodge or parry the summon's follow up strikes, _It could probably_ give _that brute Crimson a run for her_ money. Switching to her red Dust Rubin slashed at the plant creature, leaving a trail of fire that followed the tip; the summon immediately shied away from the flames, now standing a wary distance from bastard Schnee girl.

"Take care with your weapon!" Ruvys cried out, "Crescent Rose very easily burns!"

"Um, I'm not _going_ to go easy on you," retorted Rubin, "I _may_ not be trying to kill you, but _this_ is still a fight; you should _expect_ things like this to happen!"

"She's got a point…," Crimson said from the sidelines, which caused Rubin to throw up a little in her mouth at the thought of the two of them being in agreement on something.

"Regardless," Pyrrha interjected, "your…'familiar?'...seems quite formidable; I dare say most Grimm wouldn't stand a chance against it."

"You are most gracious," Ruvys bowed to the Invincible Girl, "My _Mhastina_ often says a very similar praise to me."

 _She's like a puppy whenever "Mhastina" is brought up,_ Sister noted silently.

"Yeah, _um_ , were still in the _middle_ of our fight?" Rubin remainder everyone brusquely, "Can we, like, _get on_ with it?", to which Cress suddenly raised her hand.

"Actually, could I have a turn?" she asked, "I kinda want to get some practice in now that I can fully transform."

Ruvys shook her head. "There is no issue I have with that," she said before turning to Rubin, "Do you mind that, Rubin?"

"Yes I _mind_ ," the débutante griped, "...but I know that if I refuse, _she-_ " Rubin jerked her thumb at Crimson, who was currently using her pinkie finger to pick something out of her ear "-will get involved, so do _whatever_ you want." Then she turned on her heel and trotted back to the group.

With the floor now open Cress made her way across from Ruvys, gesturing back at the group. "C'mon RJ, you to!" RJ looked around for a moment before pointing stupidly at her face.

"...me?"

"Yeah! I need someone to wield me when I'm a weapon." She nodded vigorously. "You're as good as anyone else."

"I'm _really_ not; Barb and I roughhouse all the time, and it always ends with me pinned to the floor!"

"Story of my life…," Jaune muttered, a faraway look in his eyes. Pyrrha laid a hand in his shoulder, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

"It'll be fine!" Cress assured the plucky teenager, before shifting into her weapon form. " _Trust me!_ "

RJ still looked hesitant, and looking to the other doppelgängers for a second opinion. Sister nodded, and gently shooed the girl out onto the arena floor. "Cress knows what she's talking about," she said.

With little assurance otherwise- Rubin was busy sticking her nose up at everything, Crimson was just dismissively gesturing for her to get a move on, and Ruby and her team were merely waving little pennant flags that said "Go RJ!" on them (where they got them from on such short notice would forever remain a mystery to her); Team JNPR were all gathered around Jaune at the moment -she looked forward, took a deep breath, and strode forward towards Weapon Cress, gingerly picking her up with both hands.

" _OK, now just follow my lead and you'll do fine,_ " the living weapon explained, " _First, let yourself relax…._ "

While Cress explain to RJ what to do, Ruvys marveled at the sight of the living weapon transforming from girl to scythe. Such transformations weren't an uncommon sight for her, though one still needed recite the spell that allowed them to do so, and even then they were only able to change into animals; for one to do so effortlessly and change into something nonliving was a spectacle for the young Mage.

An idea soon took form in her mind. She called Crescent Rose back to her side and held her wand, vertically, with both hands. " _Mhag, sala Ruvys ki s'oten nha wh'ess gmnanen…!_ " she chanted, the jewel on here amulet once again glowing red. Beside her, Crescent Rose began to unravel, its vines snaking their way around Ruvys' wand, forming a shaft; on one end a rose petal blade started to grow, and the sticks intertwined with the vines, giving a defined shape to the construct.

" _...and don't forget that last bit, that's_ super _important!_ " By that point Cress had finish her explanation, and RJ looked decidedly more confident. " _Now go get 'em, champ!_ "

"Right!" Gripping the living weapon confidently, RJ lifted her up, ready for action. "Come at me, bro!"

Ruvys nodded, though looking slightly confused. "Very well, I will do that." She adopted a stance similar to the one RJ took, and charged at the doppelgänger duo. She swung at them with an overhead strike, which the pair quickly blocked with flourish.

 _...did I do that?_ RJ wondered briefly before remembering Cress's advice. She quickly snapped her attention back to her opponent and broke out of the block, launching a series of attacks at the young Mage. Even though she didn't process the formal training that Beldin had the movements somehow felt natural, like she'd had them drilled into her for years. It was a strange feeling, processing that knowledge all of a sudden, but for the moment she needed to focus on Ruvys.

Speaking of, Ruvys was actually holding her own against RJ's assault rather well, considering she only just made the scythe she was using; though a little clumsily, she managed to block and parry RJ's strike with relatively little trouble, and it was clear that she had at least some training with weapons.

"She's certainly full of surprises," Sister said, a touch of admiration in her voice, "to hold her own with an unfamiliar weapon like that."

Crimson shrugged. "Eh, her form's a little sloppy," the warrior said, "and she's letting herself get pushed back too much."

"I _would_ have ended it already," Rubin interjected, only to have a clenched fist belonging to Crimson dropped on her head.

"Yeah yeah, 'superiority' and all that shit…."

Meanwhile, Team RWBY (minus Blake) were cheering the girls on in their own ways.

"Go RJ!" Ruby cheered, pumping her fist in the air, "You can do it!"

"Go _Ruvys_!" Yang countered, "Don't lets those losers show you up at your own game!"

Weiss looked puzzled, "But she only just made that scythe, and those two already-" Then it hit her. "...you're still sore over losing Remnant: The Game to them, aren't you?"

"I've got a reputation to keep, dammit!" The blonde brawler turned to Weiss, "I'm gonna get my satisfaction _somehow!_ "

Weiss just rolled her eyes. She glanced over at her team leader and assigned partner, hoping to get some insight into Yang's priorities, but gave up on that dream immediately when she saw Ruby's eyes glued to the fight, literally sparkling with glee.

Back in the fight itself, both RJ and Ruvys continued to exchange blows, neither really having a clear advantage; both of them were panting heavily by this point, and both broke off from each other, though they still stood at the ready.

RJ stood Cress on the ground, leaning on her for support. "You're pretty good for someone who just picked up an oversized gardening tool," she panted.

"And you also are quite skilled at melee combat despite not having any prior knowledge or training," reciprocated Ruvys, equally short of breath. "...in fact, it appears that the two of us are equally matched to an uncanny degree." She also leaned on her weapon for support. "Do you mind if I partake in a respite?"

"Yeah, sure," RJ nodded, "...in fact, I'll join you."

"Fantastic…!" An accord reached, Ruvys' Crescent Rose melted and reformed back into its humanoid form, Cress following suit.

"Aw, are we done already?" whined Cress, "I was actually having fun…."

"Can I have a turn?" Ruby quickly asked, zipping in front of the living weapon. "Pleeeeeeease~...?"

"Uh...OK." Cress quickly shifted back. " _Do you wanna fight with me, or-_ "

"YES!"

"As will I," Pyrrha offered, stepping forward, "You need a partner to fight against, do you not?"

"Sweet!" Ruby grabbed Cress and spun her around with a flourish (" _Take it easy, you're gonna make me barf!"_ ) and pointed her at Pyrrha. "Ready when you are!"

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Well, there you have it, folks; a look at Ruvys' fighting prowess! She didn't really show up during the climactic final battle until the very end, so here's her sparing with RJ and Cress to make up for that. (Also a little wish fulfillment for RJ. Incidentally, do you think she mains D-Va in Overwatch?)_

 _And it looks like Blake might have her hands full with Rosey given the magnitude of what she's about to drop, and the fact that Rosey already said she didn't want to go back to her own world. Oughta be a fun conversation._

 _Anyway, since this is getting uploaded around Christmas time, I figure I'd open the floor up to all of you readers and ask: "What stories would you like to hear from all the Ruby OCs?" I had a lot of fun writing off of prompts for the "Day of Fun" arc (really, whenever I do this when I write), and I think this helps the fic feel more personal to the people reading it. So, for Rosey, RJ, Sister (and Little Yang), Cress, Rubin, and Ruvys, please suggest little snippets of their lives either pre- or post convergence that y'all would like to see, and I'll include those when I get to the Bonus chapters. **Just remember, no M rated material, and no shipping.** Tone is important, and either of those things can and will easily throw it out of whack.(And I have plans for Sister, before you ask, don't worry.) _

_Also, I've branched out into other media! Check out my Twitter ( the_layman215), Twitch channel ("the_layman"), and my Youtube (link on my Twitch channel)! I'll gladly accept any and all support!_

 _And Merry Christmas (and other holidays) everyone! See you in 2017!_


	30. Touching resolutions

_Welp, here's some angst. Have fun with that._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"...y-you want me t-to stay?" the young Faunus repeated, as though trying out the words for the first time. "...r-really?"

Blake nodded. "The doctor told me she wanted to give you more medicine so you wouldn't get sick as easily, but it would take at least a month." She paused. "If you still want to go back that's give, but I think you should stay at least that long."

Rosey looked at her quizzically. "But I alr-ready s-said I wanted to s-stay here." She took another bubble of her sandwich, "I l-like it here."

Blake had to use every last ounce of her willpower to resist the face Rosey was making; she already had a hard enough time not giving in when her own Ruby made a pouty face (most people did), but for some reason it was even more potent when you added droopy dog ears into the equation.

She spared a moment of concentration to make a mental note to glare at Zwei the next time she saw him.

"I know," she said, closing her eyes briefly, "but…." There were a million legitimate reason for Rosey to return to her native dimension, both practical and personal, but somehow Blake couldn't bring herself to convey any of them to the young Faunus staring back at her.

"...do you n-not want me anymore?" Rosey asked, the distinctive glisten of tears starting to well up in the corner of her eyes.

 _...godammit!_ Blake mentally swore.

"No, that's not what I mean!" she quickly backpedaled, "It's just…. I...I don't know if I'll be able to support you if you stay here with me; I'm still in school. And I don't even know how my parents will react to me suddenly having a 15 year old kid…."

"Won't th-they be happy?" Rosey blinked.

"...I don't know, maybe…?" Then she recalled something Rubin complained about after the doppelgängers returned from their day in the town, "It's more complicated than just keeping our species."

"Why?" the young Faunus asked, blinking again.

Blake exhaled through her nose. _Now I know how Weiss feels when Ruby doesn't get something she says…._

"Look," she said, "why don't we go see what the others are doing, OK?" She hoped Rosey would pick up on the hint to change the subject, otherwise she was going to lose her temper, and she didn't want to inflict that on the poor girl next to her.

"...y-yeah, sure."

Blake let out a small but noticeable sigh of relief. "OK then, finish up your sandwich and we'll go find them." Rosey nodded, tucking into her sandwich while Blake took out her Scroll and sent a message to her team.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"There you are!" Yang exclaimed as Blake walked into training arena, gently urging Rosey to go mingle, "You missed a bunch of us fight with Cress!" She jerked a thumb behind her, where the doppelgänger in question was sitting with an ice pack on her head, Nora looking despondent, and Ren wagging his finger at her.

"What happened?" she asked, peeking over her partner's shoulder.

"Oh, Nora just got a little too enthusiastic when it was her turn to play. Don't worry, Cress is fine; she's pretty resilient for a pipsqueak." Then Yang's jovial demeanor visibly lessened, "You OK? You look a little...I dunno, tired."

"It's nothing," she said, albeit a little too quickly, and Yang wasn't having any of it.

"Blake, _it's you._ It's not nothing." She cocked her head at the door, her golden tresses bouncing a little, "You wanna talk about it?"

Blake sighed (becoming something of a habit of late) and gave a nod, following the blonde back outside.

Once they were alone Yang was the first to break the silence. "So what's going on?" she asked, "...did something happen with Rosey? You didn't look this way before I left you two alone."

"Well, it's…," Blake trailed off; she couldn't quantify her swirling emotions into words, much less pick just _one_ to focus on. "...yeah, it's about Rosey."

Yang raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything, instead simply motioning for her to continue.

"I don't know if I want her to stay here," the Faunus admitted, "I mean, it's not like I hate her all of a sudden. She's a good person and I care about her; she's had such a hard life and being here has been nothing but good for her. ...but on the other hand I can't take care of her if she stays, and she's still going to deal with racists, and I don't want to just drop her in Menagerie, and I can't...I just...I feel like-"

"You feel like a mom," Yang concluded.

"No! I-" Blake started to protest, only to stop when she saw her partner's face; her usual mirth and cheekiness was replaced with a softer expression, one that seemed to radiate empathy.

It was weird seeing it on Yang, even if it was strikingly similar to what happened before the Beacon Dance

"You feel like you wanna protect her all the time, right?"

Blake begrudgingly nodded.

Yang leaned back against the wall, her arms folded behind her head. "I felt like that with Ruby for the longest time," she admitted, "ever since that time Qrow rescued the two of us. And can you really blame me? If you didn't know any better, you'd think she'd crumble under a stiff breeze."

Blake had to admit Yang had a point there; she thought Ruby was just a naïve little girl in over her head when they first met all those months ago.

"Now as for _your_ problem," the blonde continued, "why _can't_ Rosey live here with you? I doubt she'd let herself be a burden."

"That's not it," Blake sighed. Oh, how to explain this…. "It's...I'm still a student, I don't have the means to support two people right now, let alone myself."

"...Weiss is loaded, isn't she?"

Blake glared. "Yang, I'm not going to mooch off of Weiss!"

"Then why not just quit school and get a job? No one would blame you."

"No!" She didn't want that either! "It wouldn't be fair to all of you if I did that!"

"Maybe enroll her here, then?"

Again, Blake sighed. "Yang, she only just learned how to read the other day, she's not ready to learn at this level; your own sister's barely getting by!"

"OK, _now_ you're just making excuses," Yang held up her hand. "What's _really_ the matter?"

"I don't know!" she blurted out, "I don't know what's the matter, OK? I want her to be happy, but every time I think about her staying here, with me, I just…." She stumbled over her words for a bit before giving up, her shoulders and now dropping in resignation. "I'm scared, OK? I'm scared if I take her in, I'll end up making her into another me; I practically grew up in a terrorist group for crying out loud! And she doesn't deserve that!" Her head fell into her hands. "I don't know what to do! I just...I just don't."

For a while there was silence, neither girl saying anything; Yang's arms fell back to her sides.

"...I could help," she said eventually, "if you want?"

Blake's head slowly raised up. "...what?"

"Take care of Rosey. I know a thing or two about looking after kids, and there are worse places to live than Patch."

One blink. Two blinks. "...You want to help take care of Rosey with me?"

Yang shrugged, "Why not? Where else are you gonna find someone as qualified to take care of my little sister?"

Blake was taken aback by her partner's unprecedented offer. In the short time she'd known Yang the blonde turned out to be a lot more caring than first impressions let on, she was still bold, and stubborn, and slightly vain, and all the other things Weiss normally yelled at her for, but she was also kind and, now more clear in hindsight, willing to go out of her way to help her friends.

Granted, Yang seemed like even less of mother material than _she_ was….

"I call being the fun mom, by the way."

 _Aaaaand_ the bad attempts at humor. She almost forgot about that.

"Yang…."

"OK _fine,_ I'll be the fun dad…." She pointed a finger at Blake, looking serious, "But I get custody on weekends and holidays, and you need to sign a prenup."

Blake just raised an eyebrow at Yang, staring silently, before Yang's composure slipped and she chuckled. Blake gave a mirthful huff, and this lead to the two of them devolving into laughter.

"Where do you come up with these things?" she asked once she was able to breathe properly.

"The same place Weiss gets her bitchiness from," Yang said, fanning herself as she came down. "...but seriously, just say the word and I'll drop everything and come running. What else are friends for?"

Blake couldn't help but smile at the sentiment. She was still anxious about be responsible for Rosey's well being, that hadn't gone away, but...for some reason Yang's words made her feel just a little _less_ anxious than before, though she couldn't put a finger on why that was.

Still, it was a nice gesture on Yang's part.

"Thanks," she said, nodding at her partner.

Yang grinned cheekily, "Anytime, Kitten!~"

"...call me that again, and I'll scratch your eyes out."

"So long as it's not the hair!" she chuckled, giving her golden locks a flip.

After what could have been either 5 minutes or 30 seconds of silence, Blake couldn't tell, she heard a voice behind her say " _...hey, you two should kiss._ " She quickly spun around and found Crimson standing there, leaning on the doorframe.

"How long have you been there?" Blake demanded.

Crimson shrugged. "Eh, since now; I was coming to ask if either of you wanted a turn fighting with Cress, only to find you both staring longingly in each other's eyes." She flashed a cheeky grin, "You two make a pretty cute couple, actually."

Blake felt her cheeks burn hot. "I-i-it's n-not like that!" she protested, doing her best impression of Rosey, "I d-don't like Yang that way!"

"Same!" the blonde added, "Plus I'm pretty sure she and Sun are a thing, and I'm not the kind of person to get between them!"

" _YANG!_ " Blake hissed as she spun back to her partner, her bow flat against the top of her head.

"Well, whatever floats your boat." Crimson stood back up and headed backwards into the room. "...but if you're ever in the mood for a _ménage_ with either of those two, you know where to find me."

Blake wished she could just melt into the floor.

"Uh, Blake?..." Yang asked hesitantly.

"...yes?"

Yang was unable to meet her friend's eyes, nervously scratching the back of her head, "You're not really gonna... _would_ you, you know…?"

"... _no_ ," she said bluntly. "Would _you_ do that with your sister?"

In the span of only a few seconds Yang's face went through an entire gamut of expressions; she started with perplexion, which then morphed into thoughtfulness, then unpleasant concern, then startled realization, and that morphed into disgust, which was accompanied by a very emphatic display of her gagging.

Blake felt a little better now.

 _Yang would probably call that being "more than two faced",_ she thought, before realizing that she just made a pun _...dammit, Yang._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Eventually Cress grew tired from all the fighting and had to stop.

"I'll be fine…," she panted as Sister, Pyrrha and RJ fretted over the living weapon, "I just need…like...twenty minutes…."

"Cool," Crimson said, "I still haven't had my turn with Cress yet."

Weiss just shook her head, punching the bridge of her nose. "Why don't we all do something _other_ than use Cress like some plaything? How about that?"

"Pfft! She'll be fine!" stated Nora, gesturing to an exhausted looking Cress, her hair wet with perspiration, "She said so herself!"

"M-maybe we sh-should d-do something else…," Rosey spoke up, "Um, if i-it's OK, I k-kinda wanted to w-watch the X-R-Ray and Vav m-movie…."

Ruvys looked perplexed. "What is a…'mu'vey'?" she asked.

As the group filed out of the spent training room Ruby stayed back, lost in thought. After fighting together with Cress she'd mostly sat on the sidelines and let the others have their fun, thinking back on the last few days; once the shock of all the different copies of her suddenly popping up wore off things had been pretty fun. Even when Rubin joined the group (and her "Weissness" had been reigned in a little) things were still fun. Really, aside from the Vytal Festival parade fiasco everything was a fairly solid thumbs up.

She thought back to The Vault and everything that had happened in there, about Crimson and her fight with Cinder. (She couldn't quite recall her last name though…"Autumn" or something like that.) For some reason she couldn't get the image of the usually sultry woman lying in the ground, battered and beaten and looking like she was a scared little kid facing down an Ursa Major.

And the Ursa Major was _her_.

It'd been bugging her ever since it happened, but not just for the reasons people would assume are obvious: the horrors of battle and all that. No, what bothered her was the fact that, in some convoluted way, _she_ was responsible brutalizing and then killing Huntress(?) turned terrorist.

And it wasn't so easy to just wave away either; Crimson was supposedly her from the future, and while Ruby technically knew they weren't actually the same person, there was always this nagging doubt that said " _What if we_ are _the same person; is_ that _who I'll turn into in a few years?"_ It was a troubling thought that refused to leave her alone no matter how she tried to rationalize it.

She didn't know how long she moped around the room when she heard someone enter; she looked up and saw a scruffy looking man wearing a tattered cloak heading towards her.

"So this is where you're hiding," Qrow said, "I ran into your friends back there and they said you were probably still here." His eyes narrowed a little. "You look like you've got something on your mind. Wanna talk about it?"

Ruby nodded silently.

"Alright then." He lowered himself down to the floor, sitting cross legged, and patted the spot next to him for Ruby to do likewise. She followed suit with a heavy sigh. "Now, what's making my little Rosebud all wilted?"

Ruby was too distracted to comment on the corny joke. She bopped her fingers together, "So...you've killed people...right?"

He nodded. "Yeah, I have; all Huntsmen have to deal with that at some point, except for the lucky few that don't."

Ruby's gaze drifted to the floor. "...can you...did you ever torture them first?"

This threw Qrow for a little bit of a loop; he was expecting things to go in a different direction, and as such wasn't really prepared to answer his niece's question. He reached down and grabbed his flask, popping open the cap.

"Mind if I ask you why you want to know that before I answer?" he said, taking a sip.

"Well, it's…." Ruby twiddled her fingers nervously, looking hesitant. "... _complicated_ …."

"...does it have anything to do with those girls who look exactly like you?" Qrow ventured.

"Yeah, actually," she nodded, "Well, one of them. Crimson, the one with the eyepatch."

"Ah. Her." He took another sip. "She seems…capable."

Ruby nodded again. "She's the one who did the torturing."

 _Now_ things were starting to make sense….

"She's me from the future, but I don't really know if she's _me_ from the future, and if she _is_ me from the future then that means I'm going turn into someone who likes to make people suffer, and that scares me." She paused. "I mean, I know that Cinder wasn't a good person and did a lot of bad stuff, and she probably killed a lot of people herself...but she didn't deserve that!" She sighed before looking up at her uncle, "What do I do?"

Qrow rustled his niece's hair. "Call me crazy, but I don't think you have anything to worry about. You see, in my experience, there's two kinds of people who torture for fun; people who are just a little off from birth, and people who go crazy at some point, and you're neither of those."

"It's that 'some point' that I'm worried about."

He chuckled. "You said 'Crimson' was you from the future, right?"

"Yeah...but what does that have to do with this?"

"Because that gives you a chance I don't think anyone's ever gotten before," he explained, "I've known lots of people who wish that could go back in time and change the past, but you!" He tapped her on the chest. "From the perspective of your future self, you _are_ in the past, so you have the power to make sure you don't end up like her."

"...really?" Ruby's eyes twinkled a little.

"Absolutely! In fact, you have more power than you'll know what to do with!" He took another sip from his flask, "Point is, you're an amazing young woman, and you can be whoever and whatever you want to be; you don't need to let anyone or anything else decide that for you."

Ruby smiled and threw her arms around her uncle in a hug. "Thanks Uncle Qrow! That really helped!"

"That's what I'm for…." He patted her on the shoulder, then held out his flask. "Wanna sip?"

Her face scrunched up in disgust. " _Blegh!_ No thanks! I learned my lesson after we celebrated Yang winning the Tournament."

"Then you're smarter than I am." He stood back up, motion for Ruby to follow him. "Let's go meet back up with everyone; Yang said something about watching a movie?"

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"Hey, Crimson!" Qrow called to the elder doppelgänger as the others were enthralled with the movie; on the screen the bumbling heroes were currently bumbling their way towards a burning building, their scientist friend and her flying robot following behind them.

Crimson glanced over her shoulder, "...Oh hey Unc! What's up?"

"Can I talk with you for a sec?" He motioned for her to follow him out of the room.

Once they were outside Qrow whirled around and poked Crimson roughly in the chest, "I don't exactly know what you did to my niece, but I swear to God if you do it again there is nowhere on all of Remnant you can run where you'll be safe from me and the rest of her family, you got that?" He leaned in close, "I'm not even joking when I say I will bring the worst bad luck down on you." With one more poke for good measure he turned around and stomped off, drinking heavily from his flask.

Crimson just stared after Qrow as he receded down the hall she scoffed, "Asshole coulda been nicer considering I gave him back his flask…."

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _OK, I think that takes care of all that lingering angst, so now I can dabble in some fluff for a chapter or two. There is still a thing or two from previous chapters that I want to follow up on. (One thing in particular pertaining to a certain graceful doppelg_ _ä_ _nger in a white cloak...) Hopefully I can wrap things up completely within 5 or so chapters, but we'll see what happens._

 _Also, I_ may _have slipped in some things from Volume 4 because they worked so well with what I was doing here. (Speaking of, I can't wait to see where else Volume 4 goes!)_

 _Oh, and before anyone asks, no, I don't ship Bumblebee. (Crimson apparently does, but she's kinda crazy.) No, I will never follow up on that tease. Yes, I'm a bastard. #dealwithit_

 _Anyway, I'm also on other media platforms: " the_layman215" on Twitter, "the_layman" on Twitch, and "The Layman" on YouTube. Give my content there a look too._

 _In the mean time, I need to get working on the next chapter; more characters mentioned earlier in the fic should be making another appearance!_


	31. Distorted Mirror Images

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _A little more fun, another plot thread tied off. Let's go!_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Once the movie was finished ("Is one able to learn the sorcery with which Eh'x Rai and Vahvh protect their township?") they quickly came to a realization as Team RWBY and the doppelgängers made ready for bedtime.

Namely that they were quickly running out of room for everyone to sleep.

"I am able to obtain my own bedding for the evening," Ruvys assured everyone, holding up her amulet, "It is really not any bother."

"That's not really the problem," Weiss said, gesturing to the group (sans JNPR, who'd retired to their own room after the movie ended), "it's more that we barely have any more space for in here as it is without taking another person into account."

"We _are_ already packed like sardines...," RJ added.

Crimson gave a toothy grin "Yang and Blake wouldn't mind sharing a bed...!" she said, her one eye twinkling mischievously.

She immediately received a pillow to the face, thrown by Yang.

"Rosey's already using my bunk," Blake reiterated, blushing the color of her tormentor's namesake. Beside her Rosey nodded in agreement, apparently oblivious to the double entendre in the statement.

Sister looked around the room worriedly. "I fear one of us may have to give up our spot and sleep in the hall," she concluded, "or else Rubin will have to share Weiss's bunk."

"I _will_ not!" the petulant débutante huffed, folding her arms over her chest and turning her nose up, "Sharing my bed _isn't_ conducive to my beauty rest."

"Then I guess someone's gonna hafta sleep outside," Cress said, the only one to voice what everyone was thinking. "But who's it gonna be?"

"I vote Crimson!" Ruby said from up on her bunk, her hand immediately shooting up. Zwei was currently sitting on her lap, and the sudden movement caused him to jump off, landing back on the floor.

In literally no time at all Yang, Blake, Weiss, RJ, and Rubin's hands joined hers.

"Well shit, guys, you sure know how to make a girl feel loved," Crimson deadpanned. She reluctantly got up from her spot in the floor, stretching. "Fine then, I'll go bore my tits off in the hall…." She then leaning over and patted her knee, "Whadaya say, Zwei; keep an old soldier girl company tonight?"

Zwei regarded the warrior from the future for a moment, sneezed (not that it was relevant to anything), and trotted over to Rosey, sitting his rump down next to the young Faunus girl.

"*bark!*" he barked.

Crimson sighed, "Et tu, Zwei?" Then she turned and headed out the door. "See you bitches in the morning," said, closing the door behind her.

Once Crimson was gone Ruvys knelt beside Zwei and scratches his ears. "This animal is apparently quite intelligent," she commented as Zwei panted happily at the attention. "It is fortunately he remained here and did not acquire injury from my constructs."

"Yeah," Ruby agreed from her perch, "he's pretty smart like that." Not to be outdone by the newest doppelgänger, Weiss also knelt next to Zwei and rubbed his back, eliciting more pants from the pooch.

"I don't think it would have even mattered," Yang mused, "nothing ever seems to hurt the little guy."

Team RWBY all nodded in agreement, remembering the fight under Mountain Glen.

"...truly?" Ruvys asked, a flourished eyebrow raised.

Yang nodded. "Yeah! And trust me, we've seen _a lot_ of stuff happened to him; he's even survived being set in fire!"

"That is _astounding_!" The young Mage picked Zwei up ("Hey!") and began turning over, the dog letting out a confused whine as she did. "Pray, is he a normal canine, still?"

"As far as we can tell," Ruby shrugged, "We think he may have escaped from a lab or something."

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

The next morning all the girls decided that since, by her own admission, Ruvys hadn't been able to leave the warehouse that Cinder and Co. had been using, the lot of them were going walk around the Vytal Festival fair grounds and see what booths were still open, hopefully getting to try some more fair food in the process.

"It is so thrilling to have a Bizarre such as this!" Ruvys exclaimed. She'd had an elated look on her face ever since her group (they'd once again split up to cover more ground) reached the festival grounds, glancing at every new thing that caught her eye: decorations, carnival games, food stalls, the amphitheater, pretty much every part of the bi-annual celebration that was still up. "I cannot comprehend how it must have been during its prime!"

"It _was_ pretty great!" Ruby informed the Mage in training, "Though…," she glanced around the immediate area, "there were a few more stands here before…."

"Well, the city _was_ just attacked by plant monsters," RJ pointed out, "I'm sure some people wanted to leave after that; I know I would've if I lived here…."

Ruvys hung her head and bowed at the waist towards the group, "Again, I apologize for my actions upon the eve of today."

"Ugh, _could_ you stop apologizing!" Rubin exclaimed, apparently pushed to the breaking point of frustration, "You've done it, like, a million times already, _we get it_! I _can't_ be the only _one_ who's thinking this! ...and would it kill you to _talk_ normally?"

Ruvys shrunk back a little behind Blake and Rosey, the Faunus doppelgänger patting her comfortingly on the shoulder.

"Th-there there," she said, "Rubin's n-not really a bad p-person, sh-she's just a l-little mean sometimes."

"Only on days ending in Y…," RJ quipped under her breath; she was lightly smacked in the shoulder by Ruby.

"Is there anything you want to do first?" Blake asked, "There's this noodle stand somewhere around here…."

Her shifty eyes revealed the feline Faunus's true priorities.

"We can do that later," RJ said, dismissing Blake's rather unsubtle suggestion, "Now that I'm not super queasy anymore I wanna try that Pizza in a Cup thing Crimson was chugging!"

Rubin made a disgusted grunt, "Count _me_ out!", and made a show of turning away from RJ. "I wouldn't _touch_ that swill if you said it was a Grimm _repellent_!"

"I do not believe the concoction of an elixir to protect one from the Creatures of Grimm would consist of such a rudimentary recipe," Ruvys posited.

" _In-_ deed _!"_ a voice behind them said, " _Something like that would be mass produced if it existed."_

Half the group squeaked in surprise (Ruby, Ruvys and RJ, to be precise) as they turned to look behind them; the newcomer was a familiar looking girl with bobby orange hair and freckles, and an enthusiastic smile in her face.

"Penny!" Ruby exclaimed, the first to recover.

" _Sal-u-tations,_ Friend Rubies!" she said, waving to the group at large. "And to you as well, Friend Blake!"

Blake gave a small wave and nodded once.

"What brings you here?" RJ asked, "I figured you'd be hanging out with your team right now."

"Oh, I was," Penny informed the teenager, "but then I saw all of you and wanted to say hi!"

Ruby smacked her forehead and let out a groan. "Good grief…."

Apparently oblivious to her own flightiness, the android turned to Ruvys, narrowing her eyes at the newest doppelgänger. "Are you another Ruby too? I do not remember Friend Ruby mentioning you last time."

"She's _new_ ," Rubin clarified, "As if we didn't _have_ enough strays already…."

" _Rubin…_ ," Blake warned, gently guiding Rosey closer to her side. Rubin just scoffed and gave the Faunus pair the cold shoulder.

Meanwhile, Ruvys was staring back at Penny, though not with any malice; her eyes scanned over every inch of the Atlesian Huntress in training. "What a fascinating homunculus this is!" she exclaimed, leaning closer to get a better look, "Pray, by what hand was that which incarnated you?"

"Umm…," Penny said, looking unsure; it was plain to see that she had no idea what to make of the strange version of her Friend invading her personal space.

Fortunately RJ saved her the processing power and pulled the young Mage back by her hood. "Come on, honey, leave the nice combat android alone; you looked like you were about to start poking her."

Ruvys just limply grasped towards Penny, waterfalls of tears streaming from her eyes.

"Sorry about her," Ruby apologized, leaning in to whisper conspiratorially to Penny, "she can be a little curious, apparently…."

"Apology accepted," she said, making no effort to lower her own volume, "Anyway, what are you all doing here? The Vytal Festival ended yesterday."

"We're showing Ruvys around," RJ volunteered, "since she kinda, well...let's just say she's been busy ever since she got here."

"And Blake just wanted more tuna," RJ added.

"N-no I don't," the Faunus protested, her cheeks turning the color of her surrogate daughter's namesake.

She tried [and failed] to subtly wipe away some drool that escaped from the corner of her mouth.

Penny nodded, "Ah, I see. Well then, let's go; I remember passing this noodle stand a while back, and I believe the attendant was cooking some kind of fish."

Blake's bow immediately perked up.

"But won't your team wonder where you've gone?" Ruby asked, to which the robotic girl made a motion that looked like a dismissive wave.

"They'll be _fine_! I disappear like this all the time, they're used to it," she said, before tapping her chin like she was reconsider her statement. "Although...Ciel will probably lecture me when I get back to them; she apparently has something lodged in her rectal tract, if my other teammates are to be believed."

"Yeah...I don't think they meant that _literally_ …," RJ drawled.

"A-anyway, let's head over to the noodle stand!" Ruby declared in an effort to change topics, "We can grab that other stuff we mentioned on the way! ...so long as it's free, eh heh…." she bopped her pointer fingers together guiltily, "I, uh, sorta forgot to ask Weiss for money so we could eat…whoops?"

Penny put a hand in Ruby's shoulder. "Never fear, Friend Ruby!" she said, producing a Lien card from seemingly out of nowhere, "It will be my treat!"

"Aw, thanks Penny, but I couldn't let you-"

Suddenly Blake grabbed Ruby and spun her around, staring intently (and a bit manically) into her young leader's eyes.

" _Yes you can_ ," the Faunus intoned, " _you can absolutely let Penny treat us; I need those fi- noodles…_."

"You appear to be drooling, Friend Blake," the robotic Huntress helpfully pointed out.

Blake froze and stiffly wiped the drool away.

"Smooooooth…." RJ rolled her eyes.

Ruvys scratched her head, looking contemplative. "Why would anyone put anything up their-"

"Can we go _already_?" Rubin interrupted, thankfully saving anyone from having to deal with the young Mage's awkward question, "Let's just _get_ your garbage and _leave_!"

"D-don't be r-rude…," Rosey meekly rebuked.

After prying herself out of Blake's grip Ruby slipped into "Leader Mode", heading into the remains of the Festival and announcing "To the noodle stand!", motioning for everyone to follow her.

"I don't have a problem…," Blake mumbled, trudging behind the group of doppelgängers in embarrassment.

Rosey patted her arm reassuringly.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Weiss sighed longingly as she, Yang, Sister and Cress made their way through the remaining tents and stands in the Festival grounds.

"All things considered, I'd say this was a _fantastic_ Vytal Festival," she said, "I don't know if I can wait another two years for the next one!"

"Here here!" Yang cheered. "Though honestly, I could do with less freaky plant monsters for next year's Finale Parade…."

Sister nodded and hummed her agreement. She was holding hands with Cress as she walked, the living weapon happily licking and ice cream cone they'd purchased along the way. "Call me crazy, but I don't think we'll have anything to worry about next time," she said. "I believe Ruvys has learned her lesson about blindly trusting lookalikes, as ironic as that lesson may be."

Weiss turned to address the graceful doppelgänger directly, "You said 'we', does that mean you don't think Ruvys will be able to send you all back to your own worlds?" Sister looked unsure as she answered.

"I'm not sure…; on one hand I want to have faith in 'myself'-" She used air quotes. "-that she'll figure it out...but on the other hand I…." She trailed off, gulping loudly as all color slowly drained from her face.

"But on the other hand...what?" Yang asked, looking back at the elder doppelgänger expectantly.

"I-it's nothing!" She nervously tugged the hood of her cloak, "L-let's just keep walking…!"

"It's not 'nothing'," Weiss pointed out succinctly, stopping to turn and face Sister, "or else you wouldn't be...like this." She gestured broadly to all of the graceful Huntress doppelgänger. "Now, what's got you suddenly acting like a lovestruck schoolgirl?"

" _Yo, ladies! What's shaking?"_

As if in answer to Weiss's question she heard a familiar voice call out to them. She quickly turned back around to find the speaker, and was rewarded with the sight of Sun Wukong and Neptune Vasilias waving at the group, each boy holding a paper cup with steam wafting from it. Neptune gave a charming wink.

"Yo yourself!" Yang waved back, "What brings you two here?"

"Probably the same reason as you," Sun held up his beverage(?), "trying to get one last Pizza in a Cup before the guy closes shop!"

"We would have come with the rest of our team, but Scarlett had an…'accident' earlier," Neptune explained, using air quotes around 'accident' and shaking his head sorrowfully, "and just when he was starting to recover from his injury in the Tournament too…."

"So who are your friends?" Sun asked, pointing between Sister and Cress before narrowing his eyes at the shorter of the two. "...Ruby?"

"Nope!" Cress said, popping the P, "My name's Crescent Rose, nice to meetcha!" She took another kick of hr ice cream and tilted her head slightly, "Are you supposed to be Ruyi or Jingu?"

"Uh...neither?" Sun looked perplexed by the question.

"Don't worry, we'll explain everything. Fair warning though, it's kind of a _Xiao-Long_ story!" Yang said, nudging the monkey Faunus with her elbow.

Weiss just groaned and hung her head, pinching the bridge of her nose. "They're different versions of Ruby that come from other dimensions or something," the heiress explained, "It's not _that_ long of a story…."

"Longer than my name, amiright?" She then wiggled her hands in a "Geddit? You see what I did there?" manner.

 _Ughhhhhhhhhhhh...I almost wish I was with Father at one of his stuffy parties right now…,_ Weiss sighed.

While Weiss was busy re-evaluating certain life changing decisions (Neptune immediately coming to her aid when he noticed her distress), Sister was trying her damnedest not to make eye contact with Sun, fidgeting nervously and playing with the hems of her cloak. Despite normally having an almost unnatural degree of poise and composure it all went out the window when she was within any kind of proximity to the Vacuan monkey Faunus.

She'd had the largest crush on him ever since he first stepped onto Vale's docks. And how could she not when he was always so charming, and aloof, and funny, and... _shirtless_ …and now he was standing right in front of her, looking like a figure right out of the storybooks she'd often read to Yang.

 _Please don't look at me please don't look at me please don't look at me please don't look at me..._ , she fretted silently.

"...so then _you_ must be the older sister version of Ruby," Sun pointed at Sister, Weiss having just finished summarizing the doppelgänger situation to the Faunus and his partner. He then offered his hand to her. "Sun Wukong, nice to meet you!"

"Eep!" she squeaked, her entire body shaking nervously at the sudden attention. She _tried_ to regain her composure, "U-u-u-um...i-i-it's n-n-n-nice t-to m-m-m-meet-ulp! ...you. Eh heh heh…."

She made no move to reciprocate Sun's handshake.

Cress simply licked her ice cream cone.

"Geez Sister, you've got it _bad_ ," Yang remarked, " _Rosey_ doesn't stutter nearly as much!"

"I-I'm aware…!" Sister tried to tug her hood down even further.

"Uh...is she alright?" Neptune asked, taking a subtle step backward. "I mean, it's not like there's any _water_ around here." Then he blanched, "...is there?"

Cress shook her head. "Nah, she just likes your friend a lot," she explained with all the subtlety and grace of one pointing out where the bathroom is. "* _lick_ *"

Sister crumpled to the ground, shrinking into the fetal position.

"Ugh, _dude_!" Neptune turned to glare at his teammate, "I thought I told you to turn it off when we were meeting new people!" He shook his head disapprovingly, "Not cool, dude."

"Turn _what_ off, I didn't even turn anything _on_ yet!" the Faunus exclaimed.

" _Which reminds me_ …!" Weiss suddenly interjected, striding forward and grabbing Neptune by the ear, "We need to have a little talk about you flirting with other people, _darling_!"

" _Ow ow ow ow ow ow ow ow ow_!" he moaned as the heiress lead him away.

"So...what was all that about?" Cress asked, still enjoying her ice cream.

"Just something that happened during the Tournament a few days ago," Yang informed the living weapon, "nothing too bad." Then she got a mischievous glint in her eye, "...but that doesn't mean it won't be any less fun to watch! C'mon!" She motioned for the others to follow her and headed off after her irate teammate, with Sun at her heels.

Behind them, Cress gently lead Sister along, patting her comfortingly on the back.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"Ohhhhhhh…!" Blake gasped as she beheld the ambrosia in front of her: an over sized bowl of ramen noodles, complete with a boiled egg and pungent with seasonings, and topped with strips of succulent, meaty, _mouthwateringly delicious_ tuna. A small part of her didn't want to touch the dish, to preserve this _beauty_ for all eternity...but it was quickly knocked down, beaten up, and tossed into a dumpster by the part controlling her saliva glands.

Next to her Rosey had a similar (if slightly smaller) bowl in front of her, her face mirroring that of her guardian's.

" _Typical…,_ " the doppelgängers said in unison, all shaking their heads.

"What is?" Penny asked, her head tilted slightly to the side.

"Blake was pretty much like this a few days ago before the Tournament," Ruby explained as she accepted the bowl that was handed her. "But what about you? Aren't you gonna eat anyth-?" She stopped abruptly, and a sheepish expression graced her face, "Right, forgot who I was asking…"

"It's fine," Penny assured her friend, "I am, as they say, 'on a diet'-" She used air quotes here. "-so I am fine abstaining from food."

"Ahhhhhhh! OK!" Ruby gave Penny a very conspicuous wink.

Rubin just rolled her eyes and tucked into her own noodles. "Could you _please_ be quiet?" she asked (read: demanded), "I'd like to enjoy my _meal_ in peace, thank you very much!" She gobbled up a mouthful of noodle abs told the shopkeeper "If I _had_ any money on me, I'd tip you."

The old man smiled and slid the débutante a package of crackers.

"Same; this stuff is friggin _delicious_!" RJ exclaimed while doing a remarkable impression of a vacuum cleaner. (The noodles were playing the part of the dirt.) "I can see why Beldin goes gah-gah for this!"

"It is...unique," Ruvys said, gingerly picking at the noodle one-by-one, "I was not aware one could _boil_ dough like this…."

RJ finally took a break from inhaling her food to look over at the young Mage. "Depending on how it's prepared it can be pretty good; on my world most countries have their own unique way to cook them, more if we're just talking about Italy."

" _Nom nom nom nom nom…!_ " came from Blake's and Rosey's seats, their own two cents on the topic.

"So anyway, Penny?" Ruby turned to the artificial girl, "Where were you during the Parade? Did you get to see any of it before, well…?"

Rubin quickly shot Ruvys a glare before she could apologize again.

"I saw _some_ of it," she answered, "but I was called away before those plant monsters attacked." She leaned conspiratorially towards Ruby, "Apparently, someone uploaded a piece malignant software into the CCT tower network, but I was fortunately able render it inert before it could be used for its nefarious purpose!"

"Cool," Ruby nodded, though the question marks dancing over her head said she didn't really follow what her freckles friend just said. "...maybe say it one more time for good measure?"

"She said the computer got a virus and she made it better," RJ translated, "it's not rocket science."

Ruby's eyes sparkled in admiration at the teenager's (perceived) brilliance.

RJ scoffed playfully when she noticed this. "Oh please, any Gamer worth their salt knows the lingo; it's kid's stuff, really." She slurped up some more of her noodles. "Don't be a noob, Ruby."

"Oh, OK…." Ruby poked her fingers together sheepishly; she much preferred tinkering with weapons and machines, computer stud usually flew right over her head.

"If it is a consolation at all to you, I am having trouble interpreting the speech of the homunculus as well," Ruvys said.

"Thanks, Ruvys…." Ruby sighed and took out her Scroll. "Well, might let the others know where we are…."

" _Myeah, whahefah!_ " Blake said offhandedly, she and Rosey continuing to devour their meals with aplomb.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Phew! Man, y'all don't know how much that loose end was bugging me! I set it up a while ago during the Finale Parade when things went sideways, now it's ties up in a nice, little bow, and I can focus on bringing this baby into it's true final stretches._

 _Completely side note, but RWBY: Grimm Eclipse_ **FINALLY** _dropped on PS4 and XBox 1, and it's AWESOME! I've had sooooo much fun slaying Grimm and defending security nodes with other people! If you want to join me, look for "TheLayman215" in PSN. (And follow me on Twitter too: the_layman215.)_

 _But getting back to the Fanfiction side of things, there are a few more things I want to accomplish before ending it. One is to play around with Sister's mega crush on Sun a little, another is to address something I set recently with Crimson and Penny (hence why she appeared in this chapter), and the last is something I've been planning for a long time that I haven't really given any hints about in story. Trust me, it'll make sense when I bring it up._

 _And yes, I'm still doing the bonus chapter about all the doppelgängers. In no particular order, I'm comfortable saying that the Rosey one will be "pre-crisis", RJ will be Post-Crisis, Sister will be Pre-Crisis, Cress will be Post-Crisis, Rubin will be Post-Crisis, and Ruvys will be Post-Crisis._

 _So, basically, you can reasonably expect the "Pre-Crisis" chapters to not directly connect to the main story, is what I'm saying._

 _As for RWBY Vol.4, WOW! Can you believe they did that vague, undefined thing I'm currently referencing? And I never would have expected PORT_ _of all people to be the one to do it either!_

 _For the record, this was posted before Volume 4 finished its run. (To everyone in the future, AREN'T I FUNNY!)_

 _Anyway, time to get working on the [potentially] penultimate chapter now…._


	32. One last push

_Welp, this is the last bit of stalling I can muster before I close things out, so let's just hit it!_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"Where could she be…," Glynda muttered to herself as she roamed Beacon's halls in search of Crimson Thorne, not having much luck in that venture; she'd searched just about every place she could think the abrasive woman could be (double checking the liquor cabinet in the Teachers' Lounge just to be on the safe side) and had come up empty.

At first she'd simply text messaged her to come to Ozpin's office, but after an hour it became clear that Crimson wasn't going to show. This lead to the bespectacled Huntress taking a more proactive approach in summoning the doppelgänger, to admittedly less than stellar results. She still sent texts occasionally as she searched, which lead Glynda to believe that Crimson was actively ignoring her.

Eventually she made her way to the second year student dorms, sending off another message.

"How can one woman be so hard to find?" she griped, typing as she walked, "It's not like she could have left Beacon, or that her Scroll doesn't work…." She added a few extra exclamation mark to the end of the text for good measure. "Though considering the state of that device she has, I'm surprised that it works right at all, let alone turns on-"

She was so focused on conveying her frustration through the text that she nearly ran into a door that was suddenly opened directly in front of her. Fortunately she was able to stop just short of getting a face full of wood; she wasn't a Huntress for nothing, after all.

"OK, you're good," a low voice said from the other side, one that was both new and familiar.

"There you are!" Glynda exclaimed, stepping around the door, "I've been trying to contact you got the past four hours! What in Remnant where you-"

Again, she was shocked into silence by something she wasn't expecting to see; Crimson was languidly hanging on the door frame, hair mussed, standing almost completely in the nude. Aside from a pair of boxer shorts the time traveler wasn't wearing a shred of clothing; even her eyepatch was gone, revealing burned skin where her eye used to be.

"Like what you see?" Crimson asked after a moment of Glynda silently gaping at her, "Cuz if so, then I'm willing to go for another round." She gave the mature Huntress a cheeky grin, smooching once.

" _Crimson darling, what's going on?_ " a voice called from inside the room, revealed to be a sloppily dressed Coco Adel as the girl sauntered over, a clearly too big for her T-shirt hanging stylishly off her shoulder.

She was also wearing Crimson's eyepatch.

"Is someone…." She trailed off when she saw who Crimson was talking too. "Oh...uh, hi there Prof. Goodwich, um...w-we were just-"

"Go get dressed," Glynda told the student, finally regaining some of her composure, "I need to speak with Miss Thorne."

"O-OK," she nodded, and headed over to a sizable wardrobe in the back of the room.

Crimson chuckled, "So, you want me all to yourself, huh?" Glynda inhaled stiffly.

"Is your Scroll malfunctioning?" she asked, pointedly ignoring the come on, "Because I've been trying to contact you for the last four hours."

"Oh, I left it in RWBY's dorm," the apparently promiscuous doppelgänger shrugged, "You see, because assholes took away my booze it's been hell, so I've had to find _other_ ways to keep myself occupied. Plus I've kinda got this complex about being interrupted while I'm fucking-"

Glynda quickly held up a hand, "No need to explain; frankly, I don't _want_ to know why you're cavorting with the students…." After clearly her throats she continued, "Anyway, Ozpin wanted to inform you that beginning today, one of General Ironwood's students will be observing you for the duration of you and the other Rubies' stay here, however long that may be."

"Pfft, really? Ironwood's just gonna send one measly little cadet to keep me in check? Please…," Crimson scoffed, "I'll wrap their green ass around my little in no time!"

Glynda raised an eyebrow but declined to comment.

"So who's the bitch that's gonna be my shadow, huh?"

Glynda told her, and Crimson's expression morphed from cocksure smugness to dread.

"You've gotta be fucking kidding me…."

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Eventually the other group (now with half of Team SSSN in tow) made their way to the noodle stand the rest were having lunch; Sister was still a miserable wreck, not so subtly positioning Cress between her and Sun every so often, and Weiss was very obviously giving Neptune the cold shoulder.

"I think he's had enough, Ice Queen," Yang said as they approached the stand, "you can stop giving him the _cold shoulder_ now!"

Weiss groaned audibly.

"You're lucky Crimson has to stay at Beacon…."

"You know," Cress pointed to a distraught Sister, "he can still see you when you're behind me; you're taller than I am."

Sister whimpered miserably.

"Hey guys!" RJ called from her stool at the noodle Stand, raising a curious eyebrow when she say the state everyone was in (as well as the tag alongs), "The hell happened with you lot?"

"Nothing," Weiss said curtly, picking a stool next to her partner to sit on, "everything's fine." She gestured to the menu board, "Get me a bowl of low sodium noodles, would you, Neptune?"

"Huh?" Ruby wondered, "But don't you have your own- oof!" Her question was cut off when Weiss elbowed her in the gut.

"A medium bowl, please?"

"Yes, Honey…," he sighed, taking out his wallet and handing some Lien to the shopkeeper, "One medium, low sodium noodles, please?"

A moment a bowl was slid in front of Weiss.

"Thank you," she nodded at the Mistrali Huntsman, gathering up some noodles with the provided chopsticks. "This is a good start."

"Uh...what's this all about?" Ruby asked, turning to her sister.

"Weiss-cream chewed Neptune out for flirting with Team NDGO during the Tournament," Yang explained, chuckling, "It was _pretty_ fun to watch!"

"Oh…!" Ruby nodded in understanding.

"Yeah; I wouldn't want to be in Neptune's shoes right now…."

"Me either! I'm fine with just being friends, and even _that's_ a bit of a stretch sometimes."

Weiss humphed and gave her leader the cold shoulder.

After a brief snicker Yang asked "So what have you guys been up to?"

At this Ruby perked up a little. "We met Penny! She was here too, and she treated us to lunch!"

"Right on!" Yang looked around for a moment. "Uhh...did she leave already?"

Ruby gestured another stand (whoever used it during the Festival had long since packed up, and it now stood empty) where the robotic girl was talking to someone on her Scroll. "She had to take a call."

"Ah." Her question answered, Yang plopped herself down on the bow unoccupied stool next to Ruby. "In that case...," she waved to get the shopkeeper's attention, "hey! I'll have whatever my sister just had!"

A giant bowl of noodles was slid in front of her.

"Just _talk_ to him!" RJ urged, gently patting Sister on the shoulder, "It's just like ripping off a bandaid; once it's done it doesn't seem as bad!"

"I know…," the graceful Huntress whimpered, "...b-b-but still!"

"Look, I don't really _care_ about your love life, but if it'll _get_ you to shut up about this then just _talk_ to the mong- ... _Faunus_ ," Rubin interjected, correcting herself before she let loose a slur. "It's _getting_ on my nerves…."

"Is speaking to the handsome young man truly something of which to be so fearful?" Ruvys asked. She gestured with her chopsticks to the monkey Faunus in question, "Belia- I mean 'Blake' does not seem to process that difficulty."

Sister glanced over to where the young Mage was pointing; Rosey had moved over to let Sun sit next to Blake, who was politely listening to Sun as he talked animatedly next to her, methodically finishing her noodles.

" _So then Scarlet asks 'Does rocks float on lava?' Like, who asks that?_ " He pantomimed getting his mind blown, " _Does he think we're gonna fight in a volcano or something?_ " Blake smiled at this, chuckling a little.

Sister's face gracefully plopped down on the bar in front of her.

A sympathy bowl of noodles was slid next to her.

"Good grief…," RJ sighed, shaking her head as she gathered more noodles on her chopsticks.

While this was going on Penny made her way back to the group, pocketing her Scroll.

"What's up?" Ruby asked, "You don't have to leave, do you?"

"Yes I do!" she said, sounding a little cheerful at the prospect. "I am no longer able to remain here with you all!"

Ruby, Yang, RJ, Cress, and Ruvys al looked shocked at the unfortunate news; the others weren't paying attention, wrapped up in their own whatever.

"So if you have to leave, why do you sound so happy about it?" RJ asked.

"Because," Penny explained, beaming, "I was told to report to Beacon Academy for a special assignment from General Ironwood." She grabbed Ruby by the shoulders, "This is fan- _tas_ -tic! Now we can finally paint our nails, and try on clothes, and talk about cute boys like real friends do!"

"Th-th-a-a-t's g-g-grea-ea-eat, P-p-e-e-nn-nn-y-y…!" Ruby stuttered as Penny excitedly shook her, "C-c-a-a-n-n y-y-o-o-u-u s-s-t-t-o-o-p-p sh-sh-a-a-k-k-i-i-ng-ng- m-m-e-e…?"

"Whoops!" Penny immediately let her friend go, "I'm sorry Ruby, I'm just excited to finally visit Beacon."

Ruby accepted her friend's apology by woozily swaying from side to side.

"Um...may I come with you?" Sister pleaded, waterfalls of tears streaming from her eyes, "...please? I just need to curl up and die for a bit…." Ruby raised an eyebrow at the display.

"Uh...sure?"

"The more, the merrier!" Penny added.

"Thank you…." the elegant (and currently a hot mess of emotions) Huntress nodded.

"Actually…," Penny tapped her chin, "now that I think about it, wasn't there another doppelgänger with you last time?" She looked around the immediate area, "I don't see her here."

"You mean Crimson?" RJ slurped up some of Sister's untouched noodles and continued, "Yeah, she's still at Beacon. Something about 'being sober'?" She grimaced. " _That's_ a scary thought: Crimson without her booze…."

"Why do you ask?" Ruby wondered.

"Because she didn't talk much the last time. But if she's there, then that means I can get to know her better while in doing my assignment!" The Ginger android then grabbed Ruby's arm and started leading her off. "Come on!"

"Wait, Penny..!" Ruby wailed as Penny dragged her back through the fairgrounds towards Beacon. Sister trudged after them, looking more like a ghost with a hunch than the elegant young woman she usually was.

"Is she gonna be OK?" Sun asked, jerking his thing back at the departing Sister, "She looks like looks like she got rejected by her biggest crush."

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"Oh my god, she wasn't fucking kidding…," Crimson muttered as she stood opposite Penny outside of the elevator to Ozpin's office, the android girl holding her hand out to the future version of Ruby.

"Sal- _u_ -tations, Crimson Thorne!" she said, looking positively radiant with happiness, "It is a pleasure to finally, formally meet you!"

"Charmed," the future warrior said brusquely, not reciprocating the gesture. It had been years since she'd last seen the lovable artificial girl, one of the first real friends she'd made at Beacon outside of her own team and Team JNPR, but time and the constant harassment by a seemingly endless horde of killer robots cultivated a slew of complicated feelings that would give the best psychoanalysts years of material to play around with. She never believed Penny was responsible for all the automatons in the world apparently going rogue, she was just too pure of a soul to ever want that in the first place. Yet...her death and the robot rebellion were too close to each other to not have at least _some_ connection.

Also, her and Emotions didn't really get along with each other too well….

"I hope we can become good friends!"

"Yeah, sure…."

Penny then turned to Ruby and asked, "Is she shy?"

"No, she isn't," Crimson said before her younger counterpart could, "she's just not feeling fucking talkative at the moment."

Penny said nothing, looking unsure of how to respond to the brusque answer she received. Ruby was also silent, glaring at her older counterpart.

After a moment of awkward silence Penny spoke up, "Well, when you do feel like talking, I will be around." She smiled good naturedly.

"Joy…," Crimson grunted.

Just then the elevator doors opened, revealing Glynda. "You may come up now, Miss Polendina." Then she nodded to the two doppelgängers in turn, "Miss Rose, Miss Thorne."

"Hi, Professor Goodwitch," Ruby said, giving the teacher a small wave.

Crimson merely gave a tiny nod in regards to the Huntress.

"I'll be right back," Penny informed her fiend as the elevator doors started sliding closed, "then we'll have plenty of time to talk about cute boys!" The doors hissed shut.

"Heh, yeah," Ruby chuckled, completely passionless, "what every girl wants…."

" _I_ actually wouldn't mind," Crimson said, smirking cheekily, "Girl, the stories I could tell…!"

"Please don't, I don't want to end up like RJ did," Ruby pleaded, causing the future version of herself to chuckle.

"Don't worry kiddo, you'll grow outta that eventually; I know I did."

She glowered at Crimson, "Well, maybe I don't _want_ to be like you!"

Crimson raised an impressed eyebrow. "Oh my, look who's balls finally decided to drop!" She leaned against the wall, "I'm curious, what exactly is so bad about being me? I'm sexy, I'm pretty much the strongest Huntress on the planet, and- oh yeah! I'm the big, fucking her who singlehandedly stopped the bad guy and saved the future! What's not to like?"

The cocksure grin she wore made Ruby briefly tremble with rage, wanting to strangle her older self, but she managed beat those urges back. "What's not to like," she explained, "is how you kill people, even when you say you won't."

Crimson let out an exasperated sigh, "Ugh, are you still on about that? I did the world a fucking _favor_ killing that bitch! So what if I enjoyed doing it?" She narrowed her eye at Ruby, "Besides, at some point, you're gonna have to kill someone in the line of duty. That's what Huntsmen do: they kill things."

"I know…." Ruby didn't like the idea, but she knew that at some point she was probably going to have to take someone's life; many a talk with her father and uncle had helped her accept that fact, but she still abhorred the thought of taking another life. (The Creatures of Grimm were soulless amalgamations of evil, they didn't count.) "Even so," she continued, "that doesn't make what you did right."

"Which part: saving the future or the present?"

"The torture."

There was a moment of silence as the two of them locked eyes before Crimson's face darkened.

"Don't tell me you're actually feeling _sorry_ for that bitch," the psychology unbalanced woman said, "Do I need to remind you how that _thing_ ripped Yang apart in front of our eye? _Slowly_?"

Ruby nodded. "That was _your_ Yang," she explained, not mine. And it won't happen to my Yang because what happened in your timeline didn't happen in mine, and _won't_ happen because it would've happened already if it and, and…." Ruby trailed off; time travel wasn't her strong suit, and she was starting to confuse herself with her analogy. Plus, she was pretty sure it wasn't a good thing that she could smell smoke. "The point is, I'm going to do my best to save people, not hurt them.

"Even if it means showing mercy to my enemies."

For a while both Rubies stared at each other, neither willing to back down from the other. Eventually, however, Crimson closed her eye and sighed.

"Fine, I give up," she relented, "You're clearly unwilling to see reason here."She paused and opened her eye again, "...I'm still not apologizing for what I did."

"...No, I guess you won't," Ruby realized.

At that moment the elevator doors opened again and Penny stepped out, practically beaming.

I have fantastic news!" she declared, "It turns out that my assignment is to spend time with Friend Crimson; this is sen _-sational_!" She trotted over to the stoic woman and wrapped her in a hug. "I look forward to 'hanging' with you, Friend Crimson!"

" _Fuckin' peachy_ …," Crimson mumbled.

Ruby snickered at the display. She wasn't sadistic like Crimson apparently was...but she had to admit it felt kinda nice to watch Crimson's discomfort, especially after the funk she'd been in since the Finale Parade.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Sister wandered listlessly through Beacon's halls, not really heading to any specific destination. She'd broken off from Ruby and Penny fairly soon after arriving, (not on purpose, but by the time she noticed they were gone she was by Professor Port's Grimm stables), lost in her swirling thoughts and emotions.

99.99 percent of which were centered around Sun Wukong; the other .01 percent was wishing she'd eaten those noodles earlier, since dinner was still a few hours away.

She hated that she became a sniveling little girl with bee's knees whenever _he_ was around: she'd graduated at the top of her class from Signal Academy, faced down Grimm larger than her, stood up to terrorists on a startlingly regular basis, was often praised for being a prodigious Huntress, and on top of that still managed to take care of her younger sister. She'd even managed to stand up to a massive horde of magical plant monsters without batting an eye for crying out loud!

…and yet, she couldn't gather up the courage even say "Hi!" to an aloof, goofy Faunus boy who seemed to have a chronic aversion to shirt buttons.

She sighed longingly. She loved her team, she wouldn't dream of trading them for anyone else, but there were times when her eyes went a little green at the thought of how unflappable Blake usually was (as long as tuna or Ninjas of Love were involved…), or how Weiss had complete control of her emotions around boys, or how Yang could just make friends with _anyone_! ...provided she could get past her shyness, that is. And as fast she she could tell, she was the only person in Beacon who had that affliction.

"Maybe it's futile…," she mumbled to herself, stopping by a fence encircling a deep pit and leaning against it. She peered down into the pit, watching as the Boarbatusks at the bottom milled about.

" _What is?"_ a meek sounding voice asked from behind the graceful and currently morose Huntress. A quick peek behind her revealed the speaker to be Velvet Scarlatina holding a canister of some kind.

"Oh, nothing…," Sister said wistfully, looking back down the pit, "It's just...a boy…." She sighed, "Every time I'm near him I just lose all composure, reverting to an emotional wreck." She looked back over at Velvet, her eyes shimmering with tears just waiting to burst forth. "What does it say about me that I have more composure in the presence of the Grimm than Sun Wukong?"

"I'm...not sure," Velvet admitted. She set the canister down and joined Sister on the fence. "I've haven't really talked with him much, but I hear he's a pretty nice guy, and that he works out a lot, apparently."

"He does, doesn't he?" Sister nodded, a faint smile working its way into her lips as the image of his abs played in her mind. However, the smile vanished as quickly as it appeared. "What makes it worse is that I'm certain he and Blake are in a relationship with each other, and as much as I want to be with him, I don't want to take that away from Blake." She then rested her front on the fence, letting her arms hang limp over the other side, "Perhaps it's best if I simply forget he exists and save myself the trouble…."

Velvet gingerly patted the young woman's back. "There there…," she comforted. "I'm not really all that brave either; for almost my entire first year here I would talk to anyone outside my team. And even this year I was afraid to stand up to Team CRDL."

This was already common knowledge for Sister (her Velvet had basically endured the same thing) but she still nodded politely, not currently processing the energy to the Faunus senior even if she had the desire.

"But then Yatsuhashi- he's one of my teammates- said two things that helped me conquer that."

Her interest was piqued. "What were they?" Sister asked, turning to give Velvet her full attention.

Velvet counted off on her fingers. "First, he told me that bravery isn't not being afraid, it's…." She paused for a second, tapping her chin thoughtfully. "'Taking action in spite of your fear', or something like that; I don't remember the exact words he used."

That made sense; she remembered her mother saying something similar to her and Yang.

"And the second thing-" The upperclassman counted off another finger, "-was that no matter what happened, he and the rest if my team would be there for me, and that I shouldn't hesitate to ask them for help if I needed it."

"...that's good advice," Sister admitted, feeling a little guilty that she didn't consider her own team to be helpful in this matter. And again, it was something she'd told Yang when her little sister had been accepted into Beacon.

Damn her emotions for making her reasoning all wonkydoodles!

"After that I starting becoming a lot more outgoing, and I even stood up to Team CRDL! I mean there are still times where I doubt myself a little, but like Yatsu said my team has always been there when I needed them. It's...sort of like having a second family, if that makes any sense."

"...you know," Sister said after considering the older girl's words for a moment, "it actually does make sense." _More than you probably realize…_ "Thank you Velvet, that really helped me put some things into perspective." She flashed a grateful, genuine smile at Velvet.

"That's great! Now you can go talk with Mr. Wukong!"

Her smile dropped as quickly as it appeared. "I think I _might_ need a little more time before I attempt that…," she said, bopping her pointer fingers together.

"Oh…." Velvet took a moment to think, once again tapping her chin, and before long snapped her fingers and took out her Scroll, swiping the screen until she apparently found what she was looking for. She held it towards Sister, "Maybe you could practice on this first?"

What Velvet held in her hand was nothing short of the most beautiful thing Sister had ever seen before in her short 17 years on Remnant; on the device was a photo of the object of her affections, Sun Wukong, leaning casually on his weapon in its staff form, apparently taken in the middle of the fairgrounds during the peak of the Vytal Festival.

He also had the misfortune to be picking his nose at time the picture was taken.

"Yep-!" Sister squeaked, before composing herself again, "...that might just work." She took out her own Scroll and gave her contact info to Velvet, who happily sent her the photo.

"Thank you _so_ much!" Sister said after pocketing her Scroll, giving her Faunus savior a quick hug, "I don't know how I can possibly repay you!"

"Don't worry about it; I know what it's like to feel overwhelmed."

"Indeed…!" Her spirits (and hopes) renewed, Sister turned and headed beck into the school to regroup with Ruby and Penny; she felt such elation at the thought of overcoming her greatest weakness that she just couldn't contain it. She _needed_ to share it with others! (Besides, Penny did say she wanted to talk about cute boys….)

"She was sweet," Velvet thought to herself as Sister vanished from sight, "I hope that helps. ...well, I'd better get this over with." She picked up the canister and inserted into a nearby machine that had "Grimm food dispenser" crudely painted on a wooden sign next to it.

It was only after she turned the contraption on that something the hooded girl said dawned on her, "...how did she know my name if I never told her?"

 _to be concluded…._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Alright, I think I've tied up every major loose end; now all that's left is to send everybody home and polish off this little fic!_

 _And I know I said I'd get better about updating more frequently, but with my Twitch streaming and soon to be revealed YouTube project my friend and I are working on I'm not going to have enough time to devote to this particular passion as I used to. I'm not going to wholesale quit writing (and in the short term I'll be working on those OC one shots I mentioned), but it'll probably be one shots from here on out, and if by some miracle I find a concept I make a multi chapter fic from there might be months between updates. Just FYI._

 _But enough about my First World Problems, it's time to wish the Ruby Doppelgängers a fond farewell. Hopefully they'll all take how they've grown here and use it to make their own worlds. ...except for Crimson, I don't really have high hopes for her._

 _Anyway, follow me on Twitter ( the_layman215) for updates and RWBY pic retweets, Twitch (the_layman) for video games, and YouTube ("The Layman") to see what I've been doing since 2016. And keep an eye on my Twitter for news on that project I mentioned; if you're fans of certain TFS Gaming content or Lost Pause, you should like what's in store for that!_

 _So until next chapter, leave a review and let me know what your favorite OC moment from this story was!_


	33. And then there was one-Finale

_Last chapter, folks! Hold onto your butts._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

For the next couple days everyone most just laid back and spent time with each other, laughing and having fun with whatever activity they decided to do.

Currently the entire ensemble was gathered in the library.

"Hah!" RJ exclaimed, slamming a card down on the table, "I play 'Good Intel', which negated the trap card you just played and I attack anyway; you've foolishly fouled your foil, fools!" She punctuated this with a maniacal cackle.

"Rrr...curses!" Yang said, "I knew letting to take Mistral would bite me in the end!"

"Then I propose an alliance with the Holy Schnee Empire," Weiss suggested. She formed her free hand into a triumphant fist, "If we combine our resources and catch her in a pincer movement, we can easily overwhelm her and seize the day!"

Yang just narrowed her eyes at the heiress and deadpanned "No offense, but I want to actually _win_."

Weiss's eyebrow twitched and she snapped her attention to the fourth played at the table, "How about it Cress?" she asked in a syrupy voice, "Both Vacuo and Atlas have good bonuses, we could _easily_ put RJ in her place!"

It took a moment for Cress to process the request, her face scrunching a little up as she thought. "Mmm...sorry, I'm just gonna do this instead." She then played a couple cards and moved some of her pieces next to Weiss's base. Then she rolled the dice, both cubes coming up 6's.

"Wow…," Yang leaned over the board, "that's pretty much an instead knockout for you, Ice Queen. Now you see why I didn't team up with you here."

Weiss just sat there, mouth agape, staring as the living weapon began tipping over all her pieces.

"Get güd, Weiss," RJ unhelpfully quipped.

"Could you guys keep it down?" Blake asked from another table over, "Rosey's having trouble concentrating."

" _Sorry!_ " Yang called.

"Th-they don't have to st-stop for m-me…," the young Faunus protested meekly, "I-it's fine…."

"We could always go back to the room," Ruby suggested; she was sitting with Blake and Rosey reading a book about two men on a journey to the site of a large battle. "I don't mind."

"Ruby…." Blake sighed. "The point is you're supposed to be _quiet_ in a library." Rosey nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, I know…." She glanced over at Sister, Crimson and Penny a little ways away, the future version of herself stoically lounging while the other two talking animatedly about cute boys or something equally as boring, she wasn't paying attention. "So where do you think Sister got that picture of Sun, anyway?"

"Beats me," Blake shrugged, "none of Sun's team did, I know that much."

"...huh." Ruby then looked over at Rubin, who was sitting by herself with a stack of fashion magazines, occasionally blurting out some criticism on their contents. " _Oh my_ gawd _, they_ really _think cargo pants are better than_ combat skirts _? Uncultured plebeians…_ " was her latest one.

Ruby was loathe to admit that she actually agreed with the petulant débutante a little on that point...maybe...slightly….

Just then Ruvys burst through the front doors, breathily running up to the group's area.

"Friends!" she proclaimed, "It is a breakthrough that has been made!"

"You finally _learned_ how to use contractions?" Ruvys quipped without looking up, flipping to the next page of her current magazine.

Being _actually_ curiously about what her magical doppelgänger was referring to, Ruby put down her book. "What kind of breakthrough?" she asked.

After taking a few deep breaths Ruvys expounded, "I was in council with _Maester_ \- 'headmaster' Ozpin, and he informed me that which I requested shall be arriving upon the hour! I am, at last, able to return yes mirror images from whence we came!"

"Sweet!" RJ cheered, "This place is cool and all, but _man_ do I miss boring old Earth!"

Cress nodded, playing another card. "I know, I miss my friends." She tipped over RJ's pieces, "I can't wait to show how I can fully transform now! Also, you're out, RJ."

"What!?" RJ frantically looked at the board, realization slowly dawning on her face that there was no way out for her.

"I won't lie," Sister interjected, "I'm concerned about how Yang is holding up without me there; I did just suddenly vanish, after all."

"Hey! No one's going anywhere until we finish our game!" Yang protested. She pointed directly at Cress, "You may think you've already won, but you ain't seen nothing yet; I didn't earn the title 'Dragon of Patch Island' because of my fiery temper, you know!"

Ruby held up a finger, "Actually, you did, that's _exactly_ what happened." Her eyes took on a haunted look, "That poor barber…."

"How soon will you be ready?" Blake asked, trying to steer the conversation back in topic.

"Um...it should naught take but a few minutes upon my possession of the materials," the young Mage explained, "...pray though, uncertain am I that such a spell is within my abilities, regardless…"

"Eh, I'm sure it'll be fine," Crimson waved dismissively, "When in doubt, a sharp kick or dirty talk usually gets results. I'm your gal for both if it comes to that."

This got a multitude of reactions from the group; most of the younger doppelgängers (Ruby, RJ, Rubin and Ruvys) blushed furiously while Cress looked confused and Rosey was simply engrossed in her comic book and apparently hadn't noticed what was going on. Sister's face also turned red, and she suddenly found that she couldn't make eye contact with the future warrior. Blake hid behind her own book (The Man with Two Souls 2: The Man with Four Souls, FYI), unfortunately understanding what Crimson was implying. Weiss was still shell shocked from her crushing and sudden defeat, and Yang was trying not to chuckle at Crimson's innuendo.

"What do you mean 'dirty talk'?" Penny wondered, scratching her head.

Crimson's eye twinkled mischievously. "Well, you see-"

Before she could get started RJ rushed over and clamped her hands over the older woman's mouth. "Don't corrupt the precious cinnamon roll gynoid," she warned darkly.

"...geez, just kill all the fucking fun," Crimson deadpanned, giving RJ a blank look, "put the fun in camps, why don't you?" Then she squinted for a moment, and the mischievous came back. "You know...you're pretty cute when you try to be intimidating.~" She licked her lips.

RJ immediately reeled backwards, scooting back on all fours until she was safely behind Rosey.

"...perhaps we should go help Ruvys prepare this spell," suggested Sister, to which just about everyone paying attention nodded in agreement.

Crimson shrugged, "Eh, suit yourselves; there's something else I wanted to do anyway." She stood up and started heading for the door, motioning for Penny to follow her. "You ever hacked a liquor cabinet before, Freckles?"

"I have not, Friend Crimson. Is that a useful skill?"

"It is when the cabinet has an electronic lock it."

Nobody really made a move to stop her.

For the record, Cress won when Yang fell for a trap card she played.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

Eventually they were able to set an area up on one of Beacon's airship landing pads that Ozpin graciously set aside for them, with Ruvys flitting about as she checked and rechecked everything they'd laid out.

" _Ksa, there_ is where it must be!" Ruvys shouted as Yang set a large rock down on the edge of a circular design the young Mage had drawn, "How is it that you are unable to grasp the concept of 'equidistant'?"

Yang glowered at the mystical version of her sister, "Hey, you said 'on the edge', so that's where it is! So what if it's not _exactly_ perfect?"

Ruvys looked like she was about to blow a gasket at Yang's flippant disregard of her instructions with how hard she was grinding her teeth and how much her eyebrow was twitching. Fortunately, she still had enough self control to the abject indignation building inside her.

"Over the primal, mystical forces one must exercise _precise_ control to wield Magic," she explained, disproportionately calm compared to her display mere seconds ago, "If not everything is _absolutely perfect_ then the spell may render inert, or worse, something worse than the Floral Pillar I summoned may appear. And frankly, I wish my name to retain its current state of unsullied."

"Just move the rock, Yang," Weiss said. She was putting the finishing touches on the design Ruvys began with a Dust mixture that Ruvys insisted was identical to the one chalk she used in her world. "It's only a couple inches."

"That's what you said about the speakers for the Dance," she shot back, picking the small boulder up and setting it down a couple inches to the side, "about _72 times_!"

"Ugh!" RJ groaned from off to the side, "You guys are worse than my friends when we need to use the shower in the morning…."

"They remind me of Myrty," said Cress; she, RJ and Rosey were all sitting with Blake, watching the others work, "she always says she needs to use the bathroom before anyone else for some reason."

"Yeah, Katrin's the same." The teen glanced over at Rosey, "You ever have bathroom troubles, Rosey?"

Rosey shook her head. "N-not really...though Faunus aren't allowed t-to use the n-nice b-bathrooms…."

RJ grimaced of such unabashed, naked racism from the young Faunus's world, but refrained from commenting on it. Cress simply raised an eyebrow. She asked "Why not?"

"...they j-just aren't," she shook her head.

Blake also grimaced, her eyes narrowing as memories of her youth replaying through her mind.

"That's something of a shame, then," Sister remarked, walking over. She was holding a rather large Dust crystal in her hand that Ruvys said was crucial to the entire process; it was jet black in color, with little imperfections throughout it that looked like tiny stars dotting it, "Now that Rosey has learned to read she could then pass that knowledge on to others and possibly teach herself how to write, and thus ignite a cultural revolution."

"That's a nice idea," Blake said, "but it's nothing but wishful thinking; take it from me, people don't like it when their revolution takes too long." She rubbed Rosey's shoulder, "And at any rate, Rosey's staying here with me."

"Mhmm!" Rosey nodded eagerly, "I c-can't wait to meet Blake's p-parents!"

" _Hah, phrasing!"_ Crimson hollered as she was dragged along by Rubin, Ruby and Penny following behind them. The older woman had a flask in her hand and a stupid grin on her face.

"I _can't_ believe you actually made Penny break into a liquor cabinet!" the débutante exclaimed, " _Not_ to mention breaking into a locker _just_ to get your weapons back!"

"Hey...I ain't gunna _fuckin'_ be here much longer," Crimson slurred, "I want my shit back, dammit! 'asides, I ain't getting flung through time again _sober_ , I can tell ya _that_ right now!" She then let out a gaseous belch, which prompted Rubin to let go and cover her nose with part of her hood.

Penny patted the inebriated warrior woman on the shoulder, "Do not worry, Friend Crimson, I will apologize to Professor Ozpin on your behalf; it's the least I can do!" Crimson tried to reciprocate the gesture, but in her drunken stupor she instead sloppily ran her hand over Penny's face a couple times, though the artificial girl didn't seem to mind.

" _Yer_ good people," she told Penny, "don't let anyone tell ya otherwise…!" Penny nodded in response.

Ruby rolled her eyes and addressed Ruvys. "So how are thing coming along?"

"Preparations near completion," she said, "Soon, to our original realms we shall return."

"Awesome!" Ruby exclaimed, sounding more excited than she felt; she'd gotten use to to having a bunch of copies of her to hang out with over the last week (even if some were nicer than others…), it was almost like she had seven new sisters! ...but in the back of her mind she knew they couldn't stay forever, and that they each wanted to return to their own worlds, save for Rosey.

Though it wasn't like she couldn't understand their feelings; she'd feel the same way in their position.

"Does everyone have everything they came with?" she asked the group.

"Yup!" Cress chirped, raising her hand.

" _Of course_!" Rubin huffed, "I'm _not_ a dolt like some people!"

Sister nodded, handing the Dust crystal to Ruvys. "Unfortunately, my Sweetheart was destroyed during the incident at the Vytal Festival, but otherwise yes."

" _Got evverything_!" Crimson blurted, waggling her flask for emphasis.

"I'd say I only came with the clothes on my back," RJ rubbed the back of her head sheepishly, "but that would imply I had any on when I got here…."

"I am with all my possessions as well," assured Ruvys as she set the crystal on a flimsy looking stand she'd constructed from some broom handles and twine. "I am to believe preparations have reached their conclusion! Everyone! Gather, please!"

"Well, I guess this is it, then." RJ sighed and turned to give Rosey a quick hug. "Good luck making a life here."

"Th-thank you…," Rosey said, hugging back.

"Are you sure you're gonna be ok without your Sweetheart?" Cress asked Sister, who nodded.

"I should be able to make another one when I get back, it's no big deal."

She flinched as she felt Crimson sling an arm around her shoulder. "You sure ya don't wanna try boning that monkey boy before you leave? We can put this off for a couple hours, right?"

Sister's face flushed red, and her hand reflexively went to a pouch on her hip.

"So you're sure this will _work_?" Rubin asked, hesitantly stepping into the design, "Like, I _don't_ want to end up on a world with _nothing_ but Grimm."

"It shall function," Ruvys assured the débutante, "I have confidence my recreation is accurate to the phenomenon that brought us hence."

Rubin just scoffed noncommittally and adjusted Eidlerote on her hip.

"I take it _we_ don't want to be in the middle of this thing when you do your voodoo, right?" Yang asked.

"Indeed; I accounted only for those of us not from this realm to be affected by the spell. It is beyond me what it would have otherwise…."

"Good enough for me!" Yang hurriedly vacated the design and heading next to Blake and Rosey, followed closely by Weiss. Ruby and Penny also followed suit, leaving the smashed Crimson in the care of Sister.

"Excellent!" Ruvys positioned herself between two of the large stones and instructed the others "Please, while the spell is cast remain within." Then she closed her and exhaled, clutching her amulet with one and and bringing out her wand with the other.

When she opened her eyes again,they were glowing with a silver gleam.

 _Whoa…!_ Ruby marveled, _That looks super cool! ...and a little scary._

" _Mhag, sohm i'nla krestoia sala Ruvys, mes'honen!_ " the young Mage chanted, her billowy clothing starting to flutter as though it were caught in the wind, " _Rhes'an'sila qul dopelga sala Ruvys mohs ftol kah cinkrah!_ "

When finished the incantation the circular immediately light up, sending a column of light straight up in the air. Lines shot from the base of each of the stones, connecting them to the others, the new shape slowly beginning to turn.

"This is both weird and awesome at the same time!" RJ remarked. "Uh...does anyone else feel tingly?"

"Hehe, it tickles!" Cress giggled.

"I hope you _know_ what you're doing…!" Rubin cautioned, fidgeting nervously; occasionally sparks of magic would snake through the air inside the circle, apparently getting too close for the petulant débutante's comfort.

Crimson scoffed. "She's more competent than the 'insano' Doctor who sent me here in the first place, _that's_ for fucking sure!"

"It's certain an experience!" commented Sister, casually leaning out of the way of the sparks.

Before the dazzling display went on too long Ruvys leveled her wand at the Dust crystal, glowing, magical energy starting to gather at the tip.

" _M'isan!_ " she called, and the gathered energy flew directly at the crystal. It exploded brilliantly on impact, but otherwise left the crystal untouched.

"Uh...was that supposed to happen?" Yang wondered aloud.

Ruby shook her head, "I don't know…." Then she looked over at her partner, "Well Weiss? You're the Dust expert."

"Honest? I have no clue," Weiss shrugged. "All I know is that crystal is than any other Dust we've encountered before; I'm not even sure how it was made!"

Blake was about to throw her opinion into the mix when she felt Rosey tugging her shirt. "What is it, Honey?" she asked.

Rosey pointed wordlessly at the crystal.

Blake looked where Rosey was pointing and saw that something was indeed happening; small cracks were starting to appear on the crystal, and while faint, there was a glow starting to emanate from within the Dust.

"There appears to be a reaction occurring," Penny noted, narrowing her eyes, "an unknown energy is building up around the Dust crystal."

"Th-that's a good thing," Ruby wondered, "...right?"

"Fret not," Ruvys assured her, her eyes still glowing silver, "identical is this phenomenon to that which summoned us hence!"

Ruby nodded, her fears assuaged slightly, though the fact that she was starting to see cracks forming on the crystal and unearthly glow set off some primal sense of unease within her, like she was looking at a square circle or whatever was behind Professor Port mustache or the inner workings of Crimson's mind or things mortal man was not meant to behold like that.

Rosey clenched Blake's shirt a little tighter.

The cracks on the crystal rapidly got larger and larger and the flow more intense until it finally reached its critical mass; it burst apart with a sharp sound like ice cracking, and the shards remained suspended in mid air for a moment before slowly getting drawn back to their original position, where they began to shrink until they disappeared.

"Everyone!" Ruvys called, "I would advise keeping the forefront of your minds occupied with thoughts of your homes." As she said this she began to dissolve from her feet upwards, with the magical bits flying towards the the phenomenon. "Magic is fickle, but with ardent wills can we achieve mastery...at least, that is what _Mhastina_ always says."

And with that she finally disappeared completely.

"...ah, fuck it," Crimson scoffed, "I'm just drunk enough to try this sentimental crap." She began to dissolve in the same manner as Ruvys after a few seconds. "Oh yeah, Mini Me!" she called to Ruby she was fully gone.

"...what?"

"Try to show me up, OK? I couldn't live with myself if I didn't try to make the dumb bitch who told me no eat her words."

Ruby was taken back at first, but she nodded anyway, steeling her resolve. "You got it!"

" _Bitchin'_!"

And with that Crimson was gone.

Rubin was the next one to start crossing over. "My _team_ better be trying to _get_ me back when I find them!" she said before she fully vanished.

"I'm gonna miss you guys," Cress said, "but don't worry! I'll be sure to teach everyone back home how to play Remnant: The Game!" Then she was gone.

"Out of all the things she could have taken away from this experience, _that's_ what she goes with?" Weiss asked, exasperated.

"It's been lovely meeting you all," Sister told everyone on her turn, "I'll be sure to tell Little Yang all about this."

"Tell her 'hi' from me, OK?" Yang said before the graceful doppelgänger completely vanished.

"I will…."

Her smile was the last thing to fade.

Finally, RJ was the last one in the circle.

"Well guys, it's been real," she said, snapping a salute at Team RWBY and company, "Gotta say, this has _literally_ been a dream come true for the most part." As she began to fade she shook her head and chuckled, "Man, _no one_ is gonna believe me when I tell them about this!"

Then she was gone like the others.

"So...that's it then?" Weiss asked, looking around at her teammates and Penny and Rosey, "Is it really over now?"

"I guess it is," Blake shrugged.

"Yeah…." Yang looked around the area, "Feels a bit more empty now, doesn't it?"

"Yeah, kinda…," Ruby conceded, nodding. It really did feel emptier without the other doppelgängers around, even though one of them was currently still here.

Granted, this did mean that they wouldn't have to draw straws for the beds anymore….

"Lets clean this up and go find Team JNPR," Ruby suggested. She had a feeling that the others wouldn't want them to dwell on their departure and get depressed about it, because that's what she would have wanted if she were in their shoes, "I'm sure Zwei's probably wondering where we are by now."

"I second the motion!" Weiss raised her finger, "Between the copies of Ruby and all the things that happened because of their presence that poor, _adorable_ little angel has just been positively neglected!"

"He's not _that_ adorable…," Blake muttered.

Penny looked excited at the prospect. " _Ex_ cellent! I've grown quite fond of your little dog myself."

"It's hard _not_ to," Yang said as she went over to move one of the rocks, "he just had this way of _burrowing_ into your- ouch!" A spark of magical energy shocked Yang as she reached for the boulder, followed by a ripple effect from where she tried to touch. "What the…?" She tried reaching out again, more cautiously this time, and received a lighter shock and a smaller ripple for her troubles. "OK, that's not good…."

Having a little more sense than Yang did, Weiss took out her Scroll and called for her weapons locker. "It's better if we touch whatever this is directly," she explained as she grabbed Myrtenaster from its rack. She then used it to prod at the invisible field (in a different place than Yang did) and received the same result. She tried again, this time keeping pressure as the tip of her weapon made contact; the spot where she pressed continually sparked and crackled with energy and ripples continued to emanate, which only increase the harder she pressed.

A particularly strong spark managed to reach her hand, causing her to drop her weapon. The reaction ceased.

"Well this a _shocking_ development!" Yang said, followed by a chorus of groans.

"Is now _really_ the time for your asinine puns?" demanded Weiss, rubbing her hand.

"Hey, I got shocked that thing too," Yang reminded her, "whatever it is!"

"Then I think it's safe to say that we can't get through it," Blake interjected. "Or we just haven't tried everything."

"Does anyone have something we can throw?" Ruby asked.

Penny immediately obliged by taking out her Scroll and handing it to Ruby. "You may use this; I can always get another one if this breaks."

Hesitantly, Ruby took the proffered Scroll and tossed it; it seemed to bounce off an invisible wall, the same sparks and ripples as always, before falling harmlessly to the ground.

"Didn't work," she announced needlessly.

As they argued about what method to try next ("Are you _crazy_!? What if the bullets ricochet?") Blake's Scroll began buzzing. She looked at it and saw a temper alert from her own locker.

"Wh-what is it?" Rosey asked.

Blake showed the younger Faunus the notification. "It says that someone just tried to break into my locker," she explained, "but the only things I keep in there are Gambol Shroud and your Crescent-"

Then it hit her. Or rather, something flew past her head right at that moment, a very familiar shape that she'd come to know quite well as of late; it was Crescent Rose in its compact form, though dingier than usual.

 _Rosey's_ Crescent Rose.

"Whoa!" Ruby exclaimed as the weapon flew past her as well, nearly striking her in the face. The invisible wall rippled as the compacted weapon easily passed through and came to a stop above where the Dust crystal was, soon dissolving away like the other Rubies had.

 _So that's what she meant_ , Blake thought, her eyes going wide at her terrible realization: Ruvys had said something about "those of us not from this world" before she cast her spell. At first she thought it was just a safety warning (which it also was, technically), but after seeing Rosey's weapon disappear she realized that the spell was affecting _everything_ not native to Remnant, not just the people in the circle at the time.

Every single fiber of her being was now telling her to protect her child.

"Come on," she said curtly, grabbing Rosey's hand and leasing her off the platform.

"Where are you going?" Weiss called after her.

"To get Ozpin," she lied, "he'll know how to stop this!"

"And you know that _how_?"

"Because...h-he help Ruvys set all this up!"

" _You can't keep her._ "

Blake stopped in her tracks and turned around to shoot Yang a dangerous glare. "...what did you say?"

"I said you can't keep her," Yang repeated, walking over to her partner. "And I don't mean as a pet, I don't think she can _physically_ remain here."

"Of course she can," Blake retorted, hugging Rosey close, "she wants to stay, so she's going to stay!"

"You saw what just happened, and I _know_ you realized what it means!" Yang took a breathe. "I don't know if this is how this spell is supposed to work or if Ruvys messed something up or what, but I'm petty sure it wasn't supposed to do _this_ after everyone was gone. ...we've been attacking it like it's something bad, but maybe we should let it do its job."

Tears started well up in Blake's eyes. She didn't want to admit that Yang had a point, _really_ did want to, but even her own mind was against her on this: all evidence was pointing to the spell continuing until it's job was done.

"There's no guarantee that'll work," she protested in a last ditch effort.

"There isn't," Yang admitted, "but I don't think we have a choice about either."

Then Blake felt Rosey tug on her shirt again.

"Yes, sweety?"

"...if I-I have to go b-back...th-then I will." The young Faunus fidgeted uncomfortably. "I don't w-want to, b-but it can't be h-helped, I guess…."

"Rosey…."

She hugged Blake around her middle, "I-it's OK Blake, I c-can do that thing S-Sister said."

Blake hugged her back.

"Um, Friend Blake?" Penny spoke up, "I don't mean to intrude, but the energy has begun to steadily increase; I am not sure what will happen if this continues uninterrupted."

Blake looked up at the spell gone awry and saw that in the middle, albeit fairly small, there was a shimmering mirage distortion right in the spot where the Dust crystal had been. She could also see Ruby's cape and Weiss's sidetail flutter ever so slightly in an unseen breeze as the two watched silently.

Then she let out the longest, heaviest sigh she'd done in her entire life, nodding.

Rosey nodded once back and broke off her hug, going over to Ruby and repeating the gesture. "It was nice t-to meet you," she said, "You're r-really lucky here."

"I guess so, Ruby hugged back, "I hope you can make a difference in your own world."

"Mhmm!" She then moved up Weiss, "It was n-nice meeting you too; d-don't worry, you'll get b-better at that Remnant game someday, you'll s-see!"

Weiss resisted the urge to blurt out " _Why is everyone better at that game than me?!"_ and simply reciprocated the hug. "You just worry about yourself," she said," don't let anyone look down on you for who you are."

Rosey nodded and moved on to Penny. "S-sorry we didn't spend a l-lot time together…"

"Do not worry about it," Penny assured her, "just meeting you at all was sen- _sational_!"

By the time Rosey got to Yang the breeze had picked up enough that it was noticeable in Penny's bobs and Yang's scarf. "If m-my sister were here, she'd probably b-be as cool as y-you are."

"From what you've said about her, it sounds like she was already pretty cool." She patted the young Faunus on the back, "Don't be afraid to kick a few heads in to achieve your goals, OK?"

"I-I'll try!" Rosey promised.

"Awesome!" Yang flashed her a thumbs up.

Finally, Rosey was standing in front of Blake again.

"Th-thank you for being s-so n-nice to me," she said, "you...y-you've been a g-good mom."

Blake hugged Rosey back tightly. "Thank you…," was all she was to manage with her emotions and her instincts tugging her one way or another all at once.

Now the wind was strong enough that Yang had to hold her hair back to keep it out of her face.

"Not to play the bad guy here, but Rosey needs to go now!" suggested Weiss; she and Ruby were now struggling to hold their combats skirts down.

"I _really_ don't wanna get blown away!" Ruby wailed, also struggling with her cape and hood as well.

With a visibly gargantuan effort Blake detached herself from Rosey and stood back as the young girl and headed towards the circle. She passed through the invisible barrier effortlessly, almost immediately dissolving like the others had, feet first.

"...oh, B-Blake! There's s-something I want to t-tell you!"

All composure instantly evaporated when Blake heard those words. She sprinted over to the barrier, getting as close as she dared without eliciting a shock.

"I-It's something I never got t-to say before," she continued, walking up to the barrier and placing her hand on the inside. She looked straight at Blake, happy tears spilling from her eyes as she said, without stuttering, "...goodbye, Mom. I love you."

And with a smile on her face and a twitch of her ears, Rosey was finally gone. The wind then died down and the invisible barrier shimmered once and disappeared, the Dust chalk evaporating as well, leaving only the flimsy, makeshift stand the crystal was on and the large rocks as proof anything happened here at all.

For a while no one said anything, not that they _could_ think of anything to say even if they wanted to. Blake just stood still at what had been the edge of the design, silently fighting back the tears that threatened to poor out.

"...I think they all made it back," Ruby eventually said. "I don't know, it's just this feeling I have."

Blake sniffled a little.

Taking this as a hint that talking was allowed again, Penny spoke up, "The strange energy is not present anymore, and I detect no residual side effects of this processing."

"That's good to know," Weiss thanked the android girl.

"You're welcome." Then she turned to Ruby, "I need to go apologize for the ruined locker now. If you would like, I could report how this turned out as well."

Ruby glanced over st Blake; her Faunus teammate hadn't moved since Ruvys' spell ended. "Yeah," she said, "I think we need to take care of Blake…."

"Very well, I will see you later." Penny turned and headed back to the school, then briefly turned back and said, "I will ask to spend more time here now that my mission has ended!"

Ruby nodded and waved at Penny, who snapped a crisp salute and continued on her way.

"You OK there, Blake?" Yang asked, walking up to the dark haired girl.

"Fine," she said, "I just…." Her juice wavered a little.

Yang nodded sympathetically. "Yeah, sorta felt the same way when I first got accepted to Beacon and had to say goodbye to Ruby." She put a hand on Blake's shoulder, "Hey, you hungry? I'll get you a nice tuna sandwich from the cafeteria!"

Blake narrowed her eyes and glowered at Yang. "Do you know patronizing that is?"

Immediately Yang drew her hand back, recoiling slightly. "Sorry! If you aren't hungry that's fine...I-I just thought-"

"I didn't say no." In the space of a second her expression morphed from "death glare" to one of tiredness, and the corners of her mouth tilted up in a grateful smile. "Thanks."

"...oh. Well, let's go then!" As Yang headed off with Blake she called back "Come find us when you guys are done, OK?"

"But...wait…!" Ruby called impotently after them. "...now who's gonna move this stuff?"

"I think I can manage it casting a glyph underneath one if the boulders so it floated in the air. "Now you should be able to push it." As they cleared the remains of Ruvys' spell away (Weiss also grabbed the stand) she asked Ruby "So what you said about everyone making it back to their own worlds...you're sure about that?"

Ruby shrugged, "I guess? I don't know, I just...I think I would feel worse if they didn't. Besides, when it comes down to it, I think Ruvys knew what she was doing."

"That's fair, I suppose."

An apprehensive shadow fell over Ruby's face. "Hey Weiss? You don't think I'm...like Crimson, do you?"

Weiss grimaced at her leader's question. "You're about the farthest thing from that…' _woman'_ I can possibly imagine." She pointed a warning finger at Ruby, "And if you start acting like her I will _personally_ slap it right out of you!"

Ruby giggled. "Thanks Weiss, I needed to hear that." She then zipped over to the next boulder and declared "Now let's finish this up and go get Zwei!"

 _fin._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _And that, as they say, is that. Welcome to the end of Distorted Mirror Images, friends! Honestly, I had a lot of fun with this one, and I think this might be one of my favorite RWBY fanfictions that I've written since I first got into the fandom. It was also an interesting challenge writing basically 8 different versions of the same character on top of making each of them unique from each other. (Which was admittedly easier than I thought it would be, but still.)_

 _Now before I get to my usual "Thank you" spiel, I'd like to take a moment to address some things that have been brought up throughout the course of these writings/preemptively answering some questions about some of the points in this story._

 _Firstly, the supposed "Shipping" that happens even though I specifically stated it wouldn't. Well, to put it simply, at no point do I actively push characters into a romantic relationship that doesn't already exist as of RWBY Vol.3, ep.5. And before you start citing examples like "What about Sister's crush on Sun Wukong?" or "But this scene between Yang and Blake!" everything that happens in the later part of this only happens because it's been set up earlier in the story. For example, I established very earlier on that Blake felt motherly towards Rosey, so when Rosey said she wanted to stay and live with Blake her emerging maternal instincts clashed with her logic and the realization that she wasn't prepared to care for someone. And in the show we've seen that Yang cares enough about Blake's wellbeing to go out of her way to try and help, so therefore Yang would obviously want to help her emotionally distraught friend with a massive life changing decision. Besides, I never once had a scene specifically dedicated to either of them staring longingly into the other's eyes, or fantasizing about living together, or stuff like that. (Plus, Crimson's just an ass.)_

 _For Sister, her schoolgirl crush was because she was kind of a boring character otherwise and she needed some kind of growth (which payed off with her conversation with Velvet), pure and simple. Character development does not automatically equate to shipping; no rule says I can't give anyone character development! And honestly, I'm happy with how it turned out._

 _But enough about me needlessly justifying my own decisions, let's talk about fun stuff! Like remember when RJ rose about her crippling fear and piloted a Paladin mech? (RIP Shiela… T.T) Or when Cress chased that purse snatcher through the streets and into the mall? Ooh! How about Great Rubies Race? Man, that was fun! (Leave a review and tell me what your favorite moment from this story is, I'm curious.)_

 _One last thing: there's not going to be a sequel, despite seeming evidence to the contrary you'll read in a minute. There will be the character shorts I promised, but ultimately this is a stand alone tale. Between my irl job,Twitch streaming, and budding YouTube career (ALL OF THE FINGERS ARE CROSSED) I probably won't be attempting long form fics like this for a good while. Probably a one shot here or there though; I'm not going to abandon the community I've spent nearly a decade contributing to, just...it'll be a lot longer between uploads._

 _Anywho, with that out of the way, time to say thanks to everyone who bothered to take an interest in this little fic!_

 _First, thanks to Masterelite28 for being the first to review! Much obliged._

 _Second, a HUGE thank you to The Unplanner for always leaving massive reviews with a lot of interesting observations that I always enjoyed reading and conversing about!_

 _Third, a special thanks to Greeneagle120 and Michael7123 for giving me great ideas for the Great Rubies Race. (Michael7123, the Qrow thing was positively inspired, sir!)_

 _And finally, thank you to MC DC, PinwheelGrizzly, SimplyRV, sodamon, LastOrder, Christopherweeblingjr, dracohalo117, DWfan095, Nexus Infinity, HJSDGCE, Drake G. Reaper, Kaioo, knight7572, FlashDevil, Queen Yu-na Kim, The Dark Deceiver, raw666, KuletXCore (Nice to see you again!) dudebladeX (Keep up the good work!), lostgamer64, xanothos, CyberBUNNEH, Reishin Amara, Irax, Darkrug9000, Iron-ninja, steamrick, DocHoliday0316, topaz3, SILVER EYE BS, richboylion, brave kid, Izzy Martins, HaloGoji75, RWBY Man, Fauno Man, heroupdude102, tatewaki2000, ExactChase, ItWasYourTest, Tenken132, striker072, and to the couple people who reviewed anonymously, to the nearly 200 people who favorited this, and just to whoever happened to read this and got a little chuckle out of something that I wrote. This was fun, and all of you made it worthwhile._

 _So once again thank you to everyone who took an interest in my little fanfiction, and I hope you all like whatever I happen to think up for the next one_ _ **STINGER**_ _!_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _A week later…_

"I can't believe you made us do that stupid play!" Weiss groaned as Team RWBY headed back to their room after "cheesing it" from the makeshift stage Ruby had constructed, "And when did you even find the time to write it? We've been busy with classes _constantly_!"

"I wrote everything last night before I went to bed," Ruby explained, beaming proudly, "And I woke up _extra early_ today to set up!"

"That _would_ explain why your story had so many plot holes…," Blake mused. She was currently reading a book called _Dealing with Hyperactive Children_ as they walked.

"Seriously guys," Yang asked, prodding her stomach experimentally, "have I been looking a little…'pudgy' lately?"

"Oh is it 2:00 already," Weiss quipped, "You look _exactly_ the same as the last time you asked; just because Nora can inhale an entire cake on a regular basis doesn't mean _you're_ fat!"

Ruby nodded in agreement with her partner. "Yeah Yang, I don't think you've ever gained weight that wasn't supposed to be there!"

Weiss immediately turned to face Ruby, "And don't think I've forgotten about that stunt you pulled the other day either! My wrists are _still_ chafing from those handcuffs…."

Blake chose that moment to raise her book higher.

"Look," Ruby said, "I already apologized for losing the key; who knew those things were so hard to get off?"

"I'm pretty sure that's the point, Rubes," Yang pointed out. "Where'd you get a pair of actual police handcuffs anyway?"

"From Sun and Neptune. They said I could borrow them."

"...OK, but where'd _they_ get them?"

"Didn't they say they were 'junior detectives' once or something like that?" Blake wondered, lowering her book for a moment.

Weiss rubbed her chin thoughtfully, "Hmm, Neptune did mention that at one point…."

"Speaking of which…," Yang nudged Blake in the shoulder, "when are you and Monkey Boy gonna go on another date?" She waggled her eyebrows.

"Th-that's none of business!" the Faunus stuttered, hiding behind her book again."

"Yang, stop teasing your partner," rebuked Weiss. By this point the four of them had reached the door to their room, which Weiss unlocked with her Scroll and swung open. "Why don't you just get a boyfriend of your own instead of living vicariously through-"

"...through _what_?" the blonde wondered, waiting for Weiss to finish the thought she'd abruptly left hanging.

"Uh, Weiss? You're _kinda_ blocking the doorway…," Ruby pointed out.

Blake, having slightly more forethought in this instance, peeked around Weiss to try and see what made the heiress stop dead.

"...oh."

"'Oh, what?" Yang and Ruby quickly followed suit.

Inside their room were seven blonde haired figures they were absolutely certain weren't there before: a woman with short cropped hair dressed in Vacuo appropriate attire, a woman in a bulky looking armored suit holding a rifle, a young girl with her hair in pigtails, an older teen with dog ears like Zwei's on her head, another teen with nothing particularly special looking about her (she was giving Zwei a belly rub), a young woman in a sports bra and short, her hands and feet wrapped up, and a girl with red eyes who wore a Mistral inspired outfit, one had resting on a long, thin sword in an odd looking sheath, and holding a Grimm like helmet with her other hand.

It didn't take a genius to deduce that all theses women were different versions of Yang.

" _Oh not again_!" wailed Weiss.

 _The very end…? (Non canon.)_


	34. Ruvys one shot

_Ruvys one shot. (Slight change of plans, Ruvys's chapter is gonna be a prequel now.)_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Some time before the convergence..._

No matter how many times they came Ruvys always marveled at the College whenever and Cindella paid a visit. With its majestic towers and architecture to the plethora of people from all walks of life they was always something new to experience; it was truly one of great accomplishments of Vale Kingdom, if not the world at large.

" _Mhastina_!" the young Mage in training called, tugging at the sleeve of her Mentor for attention as the pair made their way to the main foyer, "Those Mages are bending the light!" She gestured to a man and a woman dressed in an admittedly gaudy manner, who seemed to be making the very space around them bend and twist and shimmer in an enticing way.

Cindella shook her head and chuckled. "More so than not they are merely performers and are only here to renew their License," she explained, "A true Mage would not seek to be so conspicuous."

"Might I learn such _Mhag_?" Ruvys pleaded, sparkles dancing in her eyes, "Perhaps within it is the component I yet lack to cast the spells you teach?"

The alluring Mage stopped walking and knelt lower so that she and Ruvys were at level height, "I have already taught you the basis for which _all_ spellcasting operates, Rosalia, there is no hidden meaning yet to be revealed." She stood back up, "Regardless, bending the light is a useless skill to Mages of our ilk; at most it may provide a momentary distraction against those weak of mind or will."

Ruvys hung her head despondently. "I understand, _Mhastina_ …."

At the pitying display by her student Cindella let her expression soften. "I must speak with Ozpin on matters of importance," she informed Ruvys, "and I will probably not be free until the evening, so you may do as you see fit until I return. I am certain your friend are somewhere-"

" _Oh Cindella…!"_ a high pitched voice suddenly called before Cindella could finish her thought, " _I have a new spell I wish to show you!"_

The alluring Mage sighed heavily, near minuscule licks of flame beginning to dance around her hands. "Go, enjoy yourself," she gently urged, making a shooing motion with her hand, "you need not suffer _Megami Aqua_ as I do…."

Ruvys nodded eagerly and headed off on her own to search for her friends. She loathes the thought of her _Mhastina_ in distress, this was at least somewhat overpowered by her desire to once again meet with her friends; she and her _Mhastina_ lived out and away from the cities, so communing with the other members of Cindella's Inner Circle was something of a special occasion that warranted the trips. These trips rarely lasted for more than a few hours at a time, so she usually had to make the most of her time with her friends...but with most of the day at her disposal she could potentially do many of the activities that there normally wasn't time for.

 _This is excellent!_ she thought as she hurried into the main foyer, _I will_ finally _be able to spend substantial time with Yazh and Bellia and Wylles!" ...though I do wonder what Mhastina would need to speak Mhastai Ozpin on? The Grimm Plague_ has _gotten worse as if late, but not so much that it would require intervention; Mhastina told me that the severity of the Grimm rises and falls like the tides, so what could-_

Her thoughts were interrupted when she rounded a hallway and collided with someone coming the other way.

" _Ksa_!" Ruvys swore, rubbing her backside. " _Mhastina_ told me to be more mindful of my surroundings…." She glanced up at the person she ran into and found them to be a girl around her own age. The girl appeared to be rubbing her shoulder, though the motion seemed...off, somehow. "...are you well?" she asked, a little hesitant.

"Yes, I am fine," the girl responded, her voice oddly without inflection, "are you fine? We collided."

"I am," Ruvys assured the girl, offering her a hand as she made to stand up. "My name is Ruvys Rosalia, and I apologize for not being more mindful."

The girl stared at the proffered hand for a moment, then clasped it in hers (she had quite a strong grip, almost enough to rival Yazh) and stood with ease, slightly dragging Ruvys with her.

" _Ruvys Rosalia_ …," she said, as though trying out the words for the first time, "A pleasure to meet you." She shook her hand up and down a few times, still holding onto Ruvys.

"I-indeed, a pleasure to meet you as well!" the Mage in training said, wincing slightly as she tried to subtly pull her hand away from the girl. After a moment of unsuccessful pulling she spoke, "Um...do you process a name?"

The girl let go of Ruvys's hand and tapped her chin in a thoughtful yet stiff manner, tilting her head up slightly. "I suppose…," she pondered, "...I am Pehn."

"Are you a Mage?" Ruvys asked, brushing her outfit off now that introductions were taken care of, "My _Mhastina_ is Cindella Faell, I am only an apprentice at this time."

"...yes," Pehn answers after a short pause, "I am a Mage."

Throughout the exchange Pehn's expression never changed, and her voice continued to hold the same flat, even tone. Ruvys thought this strange, but compared to the myriad of wondrous things she beheld as an apprentice Mage it paled. She had also met people who acted similar, so it was not as strange to her.

"Are you preoccupied?" she questioned, "I was in search of my Inner Circle when we, uh...met; would you like to join me?"

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"Everyone, this is Pehn!" Ruvys announced to Wylles, Belia and Yazh; she found them in an used auditorium, and had wasted no time introducing her newest acquaintance to them.

"Greetings," Pehn intoned, "I am Pehn. I am a Mage." She waved her arm back and forth in a stiff manner that suggested she was waving.

"Um...greetings," Wylles said, though a bit hesitant, attempting to be courteous. "Perchance, from where do you hail?"

"Atlas Kingdom," Pehn answered simply, leaving an awkward silence in place when she did not expound.

"...Who is your _Mhastai_?" Belia queried in an attempt to break the awkwardness. "Or _Mhastina_ , I do not presume."

"I have none."

"You...have not a _Mhastai_ or _Mhastina_?"

"I have not."

The awkwardness persisted.

"She is indeed odd, is she not?" Yazh commented.

She revived a sharp slap on the shoulder from Belia for her efforts.

"Pray tell, Ruvys," Wylles asked, turning to the young Mage, "did you have some scheme in mind in bringing your...new acquaintance along with you?"

Ruvys bopped her fingers together sheepishly, a faint blush coloring her cheeks. "Well...I was, perhaps, hoping that the four of us-" She quickly corrected herself, " _Five_ of us, could attempt a simple Hunting quest?" She glanced expectantly at her friends, "We are, all of us, capable Mages, so would it not be a simple matter for us to complete one?"

"Hmm…." Wylles tapped her chin thoughtfully, mulling over the proposition. "It is indeed true that we are all prodigious in _Mhag_ , in some aspect. I... _suppose_ they are worse activities meant to pass the time than to ply our skills. However…." she focused on Pehn, leaning towards the girl, "It still will be dangerous work; how certain are you in your prowess?"

"Very certain," Pehn replied, snapping a stiff salute, "I am combat ready!"

"I am interested in her fighting prowess, I confess," Yazh admitted. "Should she be proficient, I will be not the only one to hold _agro_ on our prey!"

"You excel at that which protects others," Belia reminded the exuberant blonde, "any of us would be vanquished long before you at your worst, hence your role."

Yazh hugged and flipped her hair playfully, putting on a show of being offended.

"Yazh, we appreciate that which you do!" Ruvys tried to console the older girl, "You need not be indignant; we mean this as praise!"

"This she knows, Ruvys," corrected Wylles, taking a deadpan tone with the young Mage. "She is play acting."

"Ah...I see…."

"I must retrieve my equipment," Pehn spoke up suddenly, "then we may depart."

"Truly? Pray, what equipment do you mean?"

"My weapons."

Then let us not dally!" Yazh declared, striding purposefully towards the door; her various jewelry clacking as she walked, "Meet again with me by the Questgiver, I will have procured a Hunting quest fit for our great skill!"

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

The Hunting quest Yazh procured for the group was a simple one without a high degree of difficulty, though the reward attached to it was but a pittance when compared to the other quests available. "We fight not for glory or reward," Yazh explained when asked for her reasoning in picking the quest, "but for for the fish and thrill of facing death and beating it! ...and to better ourselves, surely." She added the last part at a raised eyebrow from Wylles.

The Quest was for assistance in dealing with a small nest of Grimm that were harassing the farmers on the outskirts of Vale City: while the farmers and their families were themselves safe from the soulless creatures by the magical barrier around the city, their fields were sadly not afforded the same protection. This made working the fields and herding livestock through them perilous, and while Grimm normally shied away from the area around the barrier, a few (like this new nest) were adventurous.

Upon reaching the affected area Ruvys and her friends began asking questions of the local farmers to deduce where where the attacks were taking place the most, and thus deduce where the nest resided.

"Ugh, how fowl this wood is!" Wylles complained as they made their way through a heavily wooded forest that several of the affect farms bordered. She stepped gingerly around patches of brambles and patches of corrupted earth, an effect of Grimm presence, as she hiked up her robes around her ankles to prevent them from trailing along the ground. "I cannot _possibly_ fathom how the Muggles survive in a state such as this!"

" _Wylles_!" Belia snapped, looking back at the pale Mage with a smoldering glare.

"...I apologize, it was not necessary to slur. Yet would not you as well in this squalor?"

"I would not," she answered promptly, returning her gaze ahead.

Pehn tugged on Ruvys's sleeve. "Ruvys, a Muggle, what is it?"

"It is a derogatory phrase meant for the common folk who use not _Mhag_ ," she explained. "Wylles comes from a family of high class, and as such does not always use tact."

"I make effort to curb my upbringing!" Wylles responded indignantly before nearly tripping over an exposed root. " _Ksa_! The forest itself conspires to impede us!"

"As _you_ are all who the forest seems to affect, perchance you have committed some act to raise its ire?" Belia suggested, the faintest hint of mischief present in her voice.

"Ruvys," Pehn asked again, "where is Yazh? She had not returned."

"I know not," Ruvys admitted, scanning the wood for signs of her quite noticeable friend, "Her promise was 'post haste', yet I see not signs of her presence."

"Mayhap she encountered a creature native to these woods she challenged it to a duel," Wylles suggested. "Tell me I speak not true that she is, of us all, the most brutish?"

Neither Ruvys or Belia could in good conscience say their friend spoke wrong.

Then, as though orchestrated by an unseen hand, Yazh came running through the brush and bramble, stopping, short of breath, in their midst.

"Sisters, rejoice!" she panted, "It is now known where the Grimm nest resides!"

"Truly? It is well hidden?" Belia wondered.

Yazh shook her head, "It is not. However, there is a concern which may give us pause."

"Pray, what?"

"...simpler it will be if beheld with your own eyes."

Yazh then led the group to the site of the Grimm nest: it rested in a clearing at the bottom of a hill, in a cave surrounded by corrupted earth. The flora that the corruption touched appeared wilted and rotting, though not dead and dry.

"What do you all behold?" Yazh asked, stopping at the edge of the clearing.

Ruvys narrowed her eyes and peered down into the clearing, scanning it thoroughly. "...it appears vacant," she noted.

"Indeed," Belia added, "it appears as though the Grimm fled some time ago."

Yazh nodded. "My observations were likewise."

"But _why_ though?" Wylles wondered, "The Grimm do not simply make nest and then vacate said nest; they are an infestation, a _plague_! ...mayhap some other enterprising soul happened by and slew them?"

Yazh shook her head, "My investigation gave no sign of battle."

"Then where have the foul creatures gone?" Wylles demanded.

As though in answer to her query a baleful cry sounded from deeper in the woods, sending chills running down the spines of each of the four friends. After a frightful few moments they heard a lumbering sound draw closer, accompanied by the sound of leaves rustling and branches snapping.

Soon a hulking beast revealed itself as it stepped into the clearing; it was larger than a bear, with muscular hind legs that wholly dwarfed those in fore, though all were tipped with wicked looking talons. It possessed a flexible neck, a tail as long as its body, and a narrow head with horns sticking upward. Glistening red and gold hued scales covered it from snout to tip of tail, and disproportionately small wings rested on its back. In its mouth were gangs that appeared as sharp as knives.

"A _Balewyrm_!" Welles gasped, immediately kneeling to the ground; around her the others did likewise. "It is clear now the absence of Grimm…."

"Indeed," Yazh agreed. "It chased me off when I strode too close to its lair, hence why I did not immediately return before."

"How troublesome...even one such as _Mhastai_ would have difficulty fighting a _Balewyrm_ …," Belia muttered.

Ruvys said nothing, merely staring in awe at the beast. The stories her _Mhastina_ told her of the _Balewyrms_ that always ended with she and her companions either skating the beast (at great cost) or them fleeing (also at great cost). Cindella had warned her to be wary of the creatures, as even a young one was not to be trifled with. By all accounts this _Balewyrm_ was still immaturely, but finally seeing one such creature before her made those tales seem like fairy stories.

"It is simple," Welles said, breaking Ruvys from her marveling, "we must return hence, more in number, and slay this beast."

"But _why_ must be our first resort?" countered Belia, "There is no proof this creature has harmed anyone but the Grimm that once were here!"

"And by slaying it here, we ensure it will _never_ cause harm to another."

"The farmers _specifically_ told of the Grimm, not if _Balewyrms_ which attacked them. We would only incur wrathful vengeance from it should we attack!"

"Then we must work speedily in our task, then."

"And should we fail, which is more likely than not, it will lash at those who defend themselves less well than us!"

Yazh did not contribute to the argument, continuing to stare at the _Balewyrm_ warily, but with a certain gleam in her eye. By contrast, the attention of Pehn was focused on the two bickering Mages, her head turning from one to face the other when each spoke in turn.

Ruvys was about to contribute her own opinion to the matter and shifted her position to better face her friends, only to lose her balance and tumble down the incline they all stood upon. They reached out for her but to no avail; they only noticed her plight once it had already begun.

The incline was not particularly steep, but it was also not high, and soon Ruvys reached the bottom, tumbling a short distance further before coming to a rest.

It took no time for her senses to return to her, and as they did she suddenly became aware of a hot wind rhythmically beating down on her neck. Slowly, she turned her face upward, looking directly into the snout of the _Balewyrm_.

Her first instinct was to call for her _Mhastina_ , but she quickly found herself unable to muster her voice to speak, let alone whisper; the the almost hypnotic gaze of the beast was focused directly at her, as though holding her in a spell. It opened its mouth, releasing more hot breath, and it made a deep, guttural sound.

After what seemed like an eternity Ruvys was able to muster a pitiful sounding call of "H-h-help…." to her friends.

Suddenly head of the _Balewyrm_ drew back slightly and turned from side to side, as though confused. Before Ruvys was able to wonder why the beast was behaving in such a way, she felt herself being dragged backwards through the air until she was deposited back at the peak of the incline next to Belia and Wylles.

"Ruvys, are you well?" Wylles urgently asked.

The young Mage was only able to nod.

"...Belia, release your spell."

"Ah, my apologies." Belia made a quick swipe with her wand and state "It is removed."

Wylles repeated her question, "Are you well?"

Again, Ruvys nodded wordlessly.

"That will suffice. Thank the Creator we were to deceive the beast before you were reduced to cinders."

Ruvys appeared lost at the summary her pale provided, so Belia explained further. "I was able to keep you from the sight of the _Balewyrm_ , while Pehn and Wylles used their _Mhag_ to retrieve you." Pehn nodded in confirmation.

"...how?" Ruvys asked once her faculties started returning and she registered what the dark Mage said.

"I bent the light around you so it would appear to the beast as though you had vanished."

At this Ruvys thought back to her conversation with Cindella earlier that day: " _Bending the light is a useless skill to Mages of our ilk; at most it may provide a momentary distraction against those weak of mind or will_." Had the situation not been so dire she would have reflected more on the wisdom of her _Mhastina_.

With her mind somewhat calmer now, Ruvys took stock of her surroundings. Belia was kneeling down, stowing her wand, while Wylles was on her other side, using her wand to trace the outline of a body in the air, which glowed a green light following the tip of the wand. Pehn stood by a short distance away, staring down the incline.

It then dawned on Ruvys what, or more precisely _who_ , was missing.

"Where is Yazh?" she fretted, scanning the area frantically, "Where has she gone?"

In response Pehn pointed toward the cave. "She is speaking with the _Balewyrm._ "

Ruvys immediately crawled to the edge of the incline, ignoring the protestations of Wylles for her to "Be still!" as she peered downward. Sure enough, Yazh was standing before the _Balewyrm_ , appearing to hold a conversation with it.

In all her young days Ruvys had never seem a sight such as this.

"She leaped down after you fell," Pehn informed the frantic girl, "...how is she able to comprehend the _Balewyrm_?"

"I have not an idea," Belia, joining Ruvys on her perch, " _Mhastai_ Oobleck has extensive records on _Balewyrm_ encounters, yet none detail what I see before me…."

"You must remain still, Ruvys!" Wylles joined the three as well, though for decidedly different reasons. "If you do not, I cannot perceive the extent of your injuries!"

Ruvys gestured for the older girl to remain quiet. "It is difficult to perceive their words…."

Though the distance between them was not great Yazh was speaking so faintly that even Belia, normally the most perceptive of their Inner Circle, struggled to listen. Her back was to the others, so none could listen with their eyes rather than their ears.

After a few minutes Yazh nodded to the _Balewyrm_ and called to the others " _Sisters, come join I and my friend! It is well and safe!_ "

Ruvys only hesitated a moment before cautiously making her way down the incline, the others soon following her lead.

"Allow me to introduce Bumblebee," she said, petting the _Balewyrm_ on its snout, "my new friend!"

"Greetings, Bumblebee!" Pehn waved stiffly.

Belia, Ruvys, and Wylles all stared in dumbfounded awe at the spectacle before them.

"Is he not magnificent?"

"...but… _how_?" Wylles asked in bewilderment, her mouth hanging agape. She continued to stutter, unable to form a full thought.

"Yazh...how is it that you are capable of understanding it?" wondered Ruvys, to which her golden haired firmed merely shrugged.

"In truth, I know not myself. Nor does Bumblebee, for he is but an infant by his kind." She stroked its maw twice, then turned to the rest. "He has assured me that it was not he who attacked the farmers, and that he will offer his continued protection for the area, provided he is brought sustenance once every month."

Belia raised an a distrustful eyebrow. "By what does he mean 'sustenance'?"

"It is _obvious_ he means livestock," Yazh rebuked, "My Bumblebee does not possess a desire to besiege humans, not unless it is them who are the aggressors."

Belia nodded, apparently satisfied with the answer Yazh gave.

Pehn spoke up, "Why did you name him 'Bumblebee'? Is that not and insect?"

"Indeed, but I am not she who named him; he has chosen that name himself."

Wylles let out a heavy breath and began to rub the temples of her forehead. "This is all too much for me to process; I wish to return to Vale City and be paid for our quest."

Yazh appeared hurt at the request. "But would you not wish to learn more of a creature that has, until now, eluded all proper study?"

Wylles raised her finger to protest, but hesitated before she spoke. "...no, it is too much for me at this moment. Perhaps when my kind has made peace with this...revelation."

"We should at least assure the farmers that their fields are once again safe," Belia pointed out, "and of your agreement with this _Balewyrm_."

The creature made a low, growling noise and exhaled a breath of hot air through in the direction of Belia.

"He says he has no appreciation for that moniker," Yazh translated, "he prefers if you would refer to him by his chosen name."

"...understood," Belia consented.

"...may we ride him?" Pehn asked.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"And you say this…' _Bumblebee'_ is quite docile and amiable, and has promised fealty to yourself and the protection of the local agricultural against the Grimm?" Cindella questioned once the group had returned to Beacon College. The other _Mhastai_ and _Mhastina_ each took their respective pupils aside when they explained what happened on their outing, with Cindella and Ruvys occupying a deserted alcove; Pehn had bid the group farewell and headed off on her own when this happened.

"To Yazh, precisely. But for certain, what happened was thus." Ruvys then poked the tips of her fingers together. "...did we err in doing so?"

The Mage said nothing, closing her and exhaling slowly; her face scrunched up as though in deep thought. "You did nothing in err," she said, "it is merely a circumstance which is often reserved for drunken braggarts and dishonest fools. I know you are neither, so forgive me for having difficulty believing your account." She opened her eyes again, "I suspect Katherine will demand Yazh allow her to inspect 'Bumblebee' for herself, but I wish do so as well. Would you please ask Yazh for permission?"

"It is no trouble," Ruvys said, "but…." She wore a quizzical expression, "Pray tell, why do you not ask her directly?"

"Well, because Yazh is a headstrong girl, as you know, and would be suspicious of my reasons for asking."

"...and what _are_ your reasons?"

Cindella knelt down and pulled Ruvys in conspiratorially.

"Just between you and I...it has been a dream of mine to ride a _Balewyrm_ sine I was naught but your age." There was a twinkle of mischief in her eyes as she said this. "Now come; eventide is nearly upon us, and our deliberations have left me famished."

"I agree wholly!" Ruvys nodded, following her _Mhastina_ as she headed for the tavern. "Now tell me of your deliberations, _Mhastina_ ; what grand machinations will you perform?"

"Nothing so grand as you imagine, Young One," the woman chuckled, "I must merely investigate a potential near a village called Kuroyuri, which should take naught but a few days at most. Otherwise, it was the same broad politics as usual, nothing for you to fret over."

"...when will you depart?" Ruvys wondered, a touch of disappointment lacing her question.

"A week hence," Cindella explained to Ruvys, which had the effect of brightening the face of the young girl somewhat, "so there will be more than enough time for us to ride in Bumblebee."

This gave Ruvys pause. "...us?"

"Indeed! Tell me, do you not possess this desire as well?"

Ruvys could not honestly deny what her _Mhastina_ said.

"I do, _Mhastina_."

"Then we shall, on the morrow, request an audience with Bumblebee! For now, let us fill our empty bellies to bursting!"

"Yes!"

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Phew! Finally finished this one up! And y'all, it's a challenge to write without using any contractions, lemme tell you! (I had to catch myself more than a few times from using the possessive "'s" on a word?)_

 _But yeah, there's a little peak into Ruvys's life before her little mishap that sent her to the Remnant we all know and love. I was originally planning to have Ruvys face some Grimm instead of the dragon-like monster I ended up going with, but once I realized I could give the Yang equivalent from this world a "Bumblebee" I couldn't resist! (Aren't I clever?) I also wasn't going to include "Pehn" either in the initial draft, but then it occurred to me: how would a "robot" work in a setting where technology is effectively set in the Dark Ages, yet similar effects are achieved through magic? Well, according to something Ruvys said when she was examining Penny in Canon Remnant, homunculi are a thing that exist in her world. However, they are clearly not as sophisticated a human is, even if they do appear human they cannot use Magic. Hence why Ruvys didn't immediately recognize Pehn as such, and still hasn't by the time the events of Mirror Images happen. Though now that she's met Penny some things about Pehn are starting to become clearer._

 _And for those who didn't catch my INCREDIBLY SUBTLE REFERENCE near the beginning, that's supposed to be Aqua from the anime Konosuba; she has a water motif and Cinder has a fire one, so, once again, couldn't resist._

 _Also, just to head off this question: no, I'm not going to turn this into its own story. My free time ain't what it used to be, and my job and YouTube are a higher priority for me right now. (Check out "Let's Finding Love", people!) if I do get more free time, I'm probably going to work on another idea I've had for a while involving Pyrrha._

 _Anywho, next time we'll check in on RJ and see how she does settling back into a routine._


	35. RJ one shot

_RJ one shot (post Distorted Mirror Images)_

 _Disclaimer: any portrayals of mental or physical disabilities are not intended to mock, nor will they be 100% accurate to real life, though I hope that they're realistic and sympathetic regardless._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

" _Dear Diary, it's been three days since I got back from that 'Remnant' place, and I'm_ still _not sure it wasn't all some weird dream or something like that. I mean, people who are part animal (eat your heart out, James Patterson!), shadow monsters who eat souls (I_ think, _I'm still not quite clear how they worked…), and every other person and their dog has superpowers? Like, that_ has _to be fiction!_

" _And I'm serious about the superpowered dog thing; the me form that world had him, it's not just hyperbole._

" _Anyway, I might as well go over what's been going on the last few days since recent events (?) sorta distracted me from you. I'll probably write down the whole weird trip in another book so this get clogged up with tangents._

" _So after Ruvys (the "hocus pocus" version of me) sent me back I found myself before this whole "adventure" started: in the bathroom, having just gotten out of the shower. Thankfully I was still in the clothes I got in Remnant, thank god, so I was prepared just in case someone decided to barge in on me ( as they've been known to do…)._

" _As if on cue someone pounded on the other side of the door, which nearly caused me to jump right out of my skin! Fortunately, the fact that I recognized that particular, no restraint knock kept me corporeal._

"Ruby Jones, if you don't open this door right freaking now then me and my tiny bladder will break it down!" _Ah Barb, subtle as ever._

" _Knowing she absolutely_ would _break the door down (see "the funeral incident") I rushed for the knob and, making sure it wasn't locked (because we have to manually lock our bathroom door done some reason), yanked the door open._

"It's OK!" _I quickly assured my agitated sister, "_ I'm not dead! I'm back!"

" _Being the concerning sister she was (note the sarcasm), Barb yanked me through the doorway and went inside herself, slamming the door behind her. "_ Mom and Dad wanna talk with you," _she said._

" _So Barb was clearly in one of her moods, best not to press as to_ why _she was in a mood. I headed downstairs and into the kitchen, where it just so happened my loving and amazing parents (dealing with us and_ six _other foster kids and exchange students on top of that? Yeah, they're kinda Superparents.) were waiting._

" _I immediately blurted out apologies. For what? I don't know, but being gone for a week might have slipped in there. However when I finally took a breath they wondered what I was apologizing for and told me they wanted to confirm what time I needed to be at my school's Special Olympics since I'd volunteered to help with them._

" _This threw_ me _for a loop; I'd been in Remnant for what felt like at least a week, and apparently barely any time at all had passed here? I guess that made sense since nobody was freaking out that I'd suddenly reappeared, but still took me a moment to process that. I informed them, and then they told me to get my shoes on and get in the car._

" _So, confession time, I_ completely _forgot that Barb's boxing team had a match against Atlas Academy today! It basically all came back to me in a rush; before my whole adventure (dream?) happened this match was all Barb could think about, and for the entire week leading up to this she trained practically nonstop. It didn't take a genius to pick up on how important this was to her._

 _Skipping a lot of boring stuff that happened on the way to Beacon Academy (Barb trying to hurry everyone along, Katrin taking_ forever _to walk out the door, and us having to explain to that Belden the intricacies of Boxing, etc) it turned out we_ really _weren't the first people there; the whole lot was practically filled with cars, and it took us a few minutes to find a spot to park. Once the car stopped Barb bolted right for the main doors, leaving the rest of us in her dust._

" _And I thought_ I _was fast running track!_

" _Anyway, we left Barb in her own (she was tense enough as it was without us hovering over her) and made our way to the gym to find seats. Fortunately for us Miles, Jennifer, Samantha and Lie Ren were already here (either for the school play or Jen practicing for an upcoming gymnastics competition, I don't remember which) and had saved spots for the five of us so we had a good view of the ring._

" _(Random thought, but why is it called a "ring" if it's a square? At least with "rink" that doesn't make you think of a band of metal that you wear on your finger. ...unless you still have an accent like Katrin.)_

" _It took a while for Barb's match to come up, but when she finally stepped into the ring she looked absolutely_ fierce _: hair tied back in a ponytail, mouth guard in, and her boxing gloves at the ready, looking like she'd deck the first person to look at her wrong. On the other hand, her opponent was the exact_ opposite _of intimidating: her red hair was done up in two ponytails on top of her head, her sports bra and shorts were bright pink, and she had a little star painted on her face like a mole. (Another random note, why are miles called "beauty marks" when they're so ugly?) Also, she was shorter than Barb._

" _When the fight started it looked like Barb was in for a hard time, because this girl (we found out her name was Meg) would not let herself get hit; Barb threw punch after punch, but somehow Meg was always able to dodge out of the way. At one point though I heard her say something about "cat like reflexes", but honestly, I was too busy chewing my fingernails off to care._

" _You know, because sympathetic anxiousness._

" _Just when it looked like all hope was lost, Barb managed to land a hit! After that it was all over for Neg and she went down after a few more hits, staying on the may until the 5 count. She actually got proactive in the next round, but ultimately she got knocked down again and_ this _time she didn't make the count and Barb won the match! That was apparently the worst of her troubles, since she pretty much cleaned up the rest of her matches, and it's confirmed she's gunna be in the finals!_

" _Hang on, Jen says it's dinner time. She's helping Belden cook some French food tonight, they charged Sam and Barb with keeping Katrin_ far away _from the kitchen! Brb!"_

" _Dear Diary, Cont._

" _OK, so, first off, dinner was_ delicious _! I seriously want to go visit France someday and try it straight from the source! Second, I just remembered something that happened yesterday._

" _So you remember when I mentioned Beacon's Special Olympics? (Of course you do, I just wrote in you.) Well, those were actually happening the day after Barb's match, so I basically did have a lot of time to rest after getting back from Remnant. But anyway, we headed back to Beacon the next day at around 10 in the morning to help set up, Barb, Jen and Miles tagging along as well to help with other stuff at the event._

" _By 11 the Olympians and their families started arriving, as well as other people who wanted to support them. I was supposed to be a coach, so I was looking for one person in particular, a girl around my own age named Taylor. (She's kinda like Sam in that she's Ginger too.) She's a sweet girl, really nice when you get to know her, but because of her autism she's a little shy and has trouble talking to new people (among other developmental issues)._

" _Anyway, I found her and her dad and lead her over to where the other kids were, while her dad went over to the bleachers. On the way I told her about the adventure I had, which she told me she loved, and she talked about the newest robots she learned about._

" _FYI, she_ really _likes robots. Real, fake, doesn't matter, she loves them all! It's how you can tell she's a good person._

" _Getting back on topic, she was already in her gym clothes so we headed over to the field where she'd be competing. There were already a bunch of other kids there with their "coaches", though a couple still had their parents with them. (This one kid with artificial legs and a young girl who seemed to be staring at nothing in particular.) The first event Taylor was in was a straight sprint, which was simple enough: everyone would start in position, the caller would count down from 3, and then all they had to do was make it across the finish line._

" _So...turns out it doesn't matter if you're a double amputee like that kid was, because he_ easily _made it across the finish line ahead of everyone else! (Taylor managed to come in third, just behind a girl who used crutches to help her walk.) He was like...who was the character again? Ran really fast, had tiny wings on his helmet…?_

" _Oh right, the Flash! (Bad RJ, forgetting something so basic!)_

" _So between that and the next event Taylor_ really _wanted to talk to the boy with the robot legs, so we headed over and I introduced ourselves. The boy in question said his name was Yuri (which I always thought was a girl's name, judging by the show's Miles usually watches) and that he lived a couple towns over. He was alright, if a little bit cocksure, and he seemed to be somewhat low key arrogant. Not that Taylor minded, since she kept asking him questions about his legs, which he usually politely brushed off._

" _The next event was a scavenger hunt, so I'd actually be helping out moreso that in the sprint. Each team was given a list of three items to find, and we either had to bring them back to a judge or at least take a picture if the thing was too big or heavy to carry. Our list was pretty simple: find a white rock, something green, and a new friend._

" _We found the white rock in the display for the event today, which was made out of a bunch of different colored rocks arranged to spell out "Beacon Special Olympics". (Kudos to everyone who worked on that, it looked_ awesome _!) The "something green" was also pretty easy to find, we just took a picture of one of the other coaches who'd dyed their hair green, which normally looks kinda ugly to me but this girl somehow made it work._

" _I thought "a new friend" would be hard because of how shy Taylor usually is, but to my surprise she made a beeline for Yuri and tried to drag him over to the judge. Once I caught up with her and explained things to him and his coach they went along with us. And it turned out that they found everything on their list as well, so we were going to the same place anyway. Needless to say, Taylor was super happy with how that turned out._

" _Once the hunt was over they announced that everyone could take a half hour break so we could eat lunch which was good, because_ I _was feeling tired from all this for some reason. (Maybe I was slightly out of shape from lazing around Remnant for a week, I dunno.) I quickly grabbed a granola bar from the snack station that was set up (Mikes and Jen were rubbing it, ftr) and then took Taylor to get her own lunch. We sat down with Barb, who was talking with Mr. Heyman, the Civics and History teacher, and just shot the breeze about whatever; I tried telling her about Remnant and everything that happened to me there, but the crack she made that I should be competing next to Taylor told me she didn't believe me._

" _I, of course, punched her in the arm for the remark and dropped it. She just chuckled. (She could easily break me in half if she wanted to, and I learned at a very early age that the goto pulling of the hair had_ dire _consequences.)_

" _The final event was a relay race, with everyone assigned to random teams, and they'd each do one collective lap around the track. Not gonna lie, I was a little bit worried for Taylor in this one. You see, we never actually got around to practicing for a relay race, and one of the symptoms of her autism is that she has a hard time trusting new people (well, when they don't have "robot legs", apparently…). And on top of that Yuri wasn't on our assigned team, and he was pretty much the only person here, aside from my close associations, that Taylor bothered interacting with._

" _Throwing caution to the wind I I lead Taylor to her position for the race, going over what she had to do one more time. She nodded, which meant she was actually listening, but she kept staring ahead at nothing particular, which meant it was more of a reflex nod than anything else. Since I was grasping at straws anyway, I told her "Do your best, and maybe we can talk to Yuri one more time."_

" _If you'd spent any time with this girl, you'd see that she lit up like the Fourth of July when I said that!_

" _So the race started and the baton was pass off a couple times before it was handed to Taylor by that girl I mentioned before (you know, the one with her dad who was staring at nothing?), who held it out expectantly. Taylor hesitated for a moment, but then I saw her face steel up and she grabbed the baton, running forward with ferver. And not only did she pass it off without any trouble, but she was actually the first person from her leg of the race to do that!_

" _Which just goes to show you that you can accomplish_ anything _with the proper motivation, no matter who you are._

" _Ultimately her team finished second overall, but they was only because Yuri was the last runner on his own team to go. Still, I was happy for Taylor that she did her best, and she was happy that I was happy, and that she'd get to hang with Roboboy for a little longer._

" _However, before any of that there was an "awards ceremony" of sorts. Some people might call it patronizing to give everyone a trophy even if they didn't technically win, but I say that everyone tried their damnedest and they should be congratulated for their efforts! So I stood next to Taylor in a line of all the participants and their coaches/parents as the coordinators gave a speech about how we were all amazing and how we should get discouraged because we might not do something as well as someone else that weirdly hit home for me considering recent (possibly?) events, and then everyone was given a small trophy that had the words "Maximum Effort" on the base. (Whoever was in charge of these things has_ clearly _seen too much Deadpool.)_

" _After that was over and after Taylor's father congratulated her the two of us went over to talk with Yuri again. I actually talked to his foster mother this time too; she's a nice lady, but also weirdly intimidating in a way, I can't really explain it. Still, she was nice, I guess._

" _So why am I writing any of this down when I could be chronicling my Awesome, Weird, Exciting, Scary Remnant Adventure? Well...I guess it's to help ground myself in reality. I mean, I just spent a week in this amazing place with a bunch of copies of myself, and the minute I get back home I find out that barely any time has passed! And my 15 year old brain is like "Did that really just happen? Was it all just some weird fever dream from getting lightheaded in the shower?", and I'm the only one who knows this happened, so it's not like I can bond over nachos with anyone about their own experiences like this. (And don't even get me_ started _on how I don't want to go near the parts of the Internet where stories like this usually end up!) ...I guess this is sorta like Inception, where all the characters have this one item that keeps them anchored to reality, only for me it's like "Hey Barb, remember when you boxed against Meg that one time?"; I won't be the only one who remembers that, so even if all the piece don't fit together exactly, at least the important parts will._

" _...or something like that. Maybe I'm putting to much thought into this, but regardless, it still feels good to write all this stuff out._

" _Anywho, that'll about do it for this entry, Diary. I'll write more when something interesting happens, but for the moment I need to get myself ready for the big Overwatch event that's happening tomorrow; I'm gunna try playing a Healer this time, so I need to get some practice in with Mercy and Lucio. Peace!_

" _P.S. Remember to get Sam back for putting whipped cream in my high tops this morning. I am a vengeful god, after all."_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Two down, only four more one shots to go!_

 _So this one was a lot of fun to write, and just because I could use contractions (though it did help); this is the first time in a long while where I've written in the First Person. Takes me back to the days of writing Maximum Ride Fanfiction…!_

 _But enough about nostalgia, let's talk about what happened in this chapter! Firstly, I promise to stop backhandedly focusing so much on "Yang" in these things, they're supposed to be about Ruby, after all._

 _Second, "Penny" won't be so much of a major focus either, though this was more if an accident than the Yang thing. (It just so happened that both OCs I chose to focus on first immediately gave me ideas on how to handle Penny in their respective worlds.)_

 _So, interesting fact about myself; I was homeschooled for most of my life, so any knowledge I have about the typical goings on in a public school come from second hand accounts or the media at large. As such it's always something of an extra challenge to write about things in a school setting, but I still try my best and hopeful what comes out is at least believable. (Which is kind of why I enjoy writing in the RWBY fandom so much, because the school setting is mostly backdrop for the shenanigans that go on.) This also goes back to my philosophy of "you don't need to have experienced something first hand to write about it" in the context of writing fiction. Though I still think you should at least have a decent grasp on how the real thing works before writing so you can add that grain of truth that helps sell the lie._

 _Anyway, next time we'll check in with Rubin after she gets back to her home world. Did any of the lessons she learned in Canon Remnant stick? Tune in to find out._

 _And be sure to follow me on Twitter ( the_layman215) and check out "Let's Finding Love" on YouTube, where I and my friend suffer through cringy anime visnovels in our quest to find Best Girl. (And for your amusement, of course.)_


	36. Rosey one shot

_Rosey one shot_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"Come on, Ruby!" Weiss urged as she led the young dog Faunus through the barrios of Menagerie, her cat ears twitching with excitement, "You'll love this, I swear!"

"...ok-k-kay," she nodded, following along. She wasn't sure what her friend wanted to show her, but it had to be pretty amazing if Weiss was willing to brave the crowds of humans that were currently flocking the streets of Vale. She herself normally wouldn't be doing this, but all the other Faunus were somehow busy, and she didn't really want to spend the day by herself.

While the Faunus were technically allowed to come and go from Vale as they pleased, they were forbidden from going to certain areas, and everywhere else they'd get the cold shoulder, if they were lucky. You really only came into the city if you were desperate and needed a means to support your family. (Though there were plenty of Faunus who'd rather starve than wound their pride by working for a human.) Often times Faunus would avoid the official checkpoints and find ways to sneak in, because pride be damned, the stuff the humans threw away was usually better quality than what was made available in Menagerie.

Today was the first day of the Vytal Festival, when the humans brokered some peace accord or something - it didn't really have anything to do with the Faunus, so it wasn't essential knowledge to hold on to - and as such there were more humans about than usual do to the vendors who lined the streets, the amateur performers, the games that were set up, not to mention everyone who partook in them.

Ruby didn't do so well in normal crowds, much less crowds of people who rarely needed more than a shallow reason to lynch the nearest Faunus if given the opportunity. She clung to the back of Weiss's shirt as she lead the younger girl through the streets.

"Wh-what's so imp-portant here?" she asked, tugging her good further over her face.

"I saw this thing in a magazine and I wanted to know if it's still there," she explained, squeezing past a couple of colorfully done up women facing in differential directions, forcing Ruby to do the same. "I figured everyone would be too distracted today to care about a couple Faunus window shopping."

It sounded smart, at the very least; none of the humans they passed seemed to pay them much notice, being too enamoured with whatever else was holding their attention.

The two of them continued making their way through the streets until they reached an area where a bunch of humanoid robots were patrolling, walked back and forth in a preprogrammed pattern, occasionally passing each other. Past them were trendy boutiques, all with elaborate window displays for what was presumably the hottest fashions. In a storefront close to the patrol border of the robots was a trio of mannequins that were dressed up in three different outfits, all of them very, very white. On the one farthest from the entrance was a short jacket that cut off at midriff length, left undone, that looked like it was made of a soft looking fabric, lined with red velvet. It's hems were trimmed in a wavy pattern.

"It _is_ still here!" Weiss exclaimed, peeking out from behind a lamppost, "Doesn't it look _awesome_?"

"Y-yeah, awesome…." Ruby answered not really paying attention to the object of her friend's desire. She was instead focused on the people that walked by, regarding them warily on the off chance they happened to notice the two Faunus slinking around the city. It was basically instinct for her at this point, and she couldn't fathom how Weiss _wasn't_ fidgeting with nervousness being here.

As she watched the humans pass by she made note of each of their faces, should she and her friend needed to hide. Everyone looked happy, going to and fro, but she knew that humans' were fickle and could change if your tail swished the wrong way. Occasionally a child would ask another adult about them as they passed by, only for the adult to not so subtly usher them in the opposite direction. She'd kind of accepted that as normal by now, but it was still disheartening when it occurred.

Weiss was currently lost in her own little world, going on about much she wishes she had a jacket like that and how she wished people would treat Faunus better so they could have the same rights as humans, but Ruby tuned most of it out. She'd heard it many times before, and right now her survival instincts were the more important voice she was hearing.

After a while she noticed a young girl with short blonde hair walk by. She slipped on a soda can someone left lying on the ground, falling onto her hand and knees; not ten seconds later the girl's mother, a petite woman with auburn hair, rushed to her side and immediately started fretting over her, checking her for injuries. The girl shook her head 'no', tears shimmering in the corners of her blue eyes, and her mother picked her up and held her close, saying how much she worried about her daughter.

As they walked away Ruby fought to keep her own emotions from spilling over. Seeing the human mother and child reminded her of her own dead family and how much she missed them, the last memory of them threatening to turn her into a blubbering mess.

"...I w-want to go b-back," she whispered, tugging lightly on Weiss's shirt.

"...and then we could all- huh?"

"I want t-to go b-back home," she repeated, "p-please?" She tugged a little more. "We sh-shouldn't even be here a-anyway…."

Weiss looked like she wanted to protest, but she managed to restrain herself.

"...OK, we'll head back." She once again took the younger Faunus by the hand and led Ruby away from the vantage point. "It's not like I can't just look at the picture, anyway."

As they headed back into Menagerie Weiss asked, "Hey, how about we get some coffee? You said you wanted to try some, right?"

"...mhmm," Ruby nodded.

"Then let's go find that old guy! You know, the one with the feathery hair?"

She nodded meekly.

"OK then, let's go!"

 _fin._

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _And that's a little peek into Rosey's life pre-Mirror Images. If it hasn't already been made clear by the story proper, she didn't really have a happy life._

 _Since this isn't a very long chapter there's not a lot to unpack here. I'd say this is more akin to foreshadowing for events that more immediately precede the main story (see Rosey's character summary), not to mention a bit of practice focusing on "Ruby" as opposed to her friends so much. Does that make sense?_

 _I guess it was fun to help expand the world a little, even if it's not a particularly nice world. (Same goes for Ruvys and RJ's chapters, though without the oppressive totalitarianism.)_

 _Anyway, next chapter we're going to jump ahead to_ after _the end of the main story and see what Cress has been up to after getting sent back._


	37. Cress one shot

_Cress one shot_

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"No."

"Aw! C'mon, Myrty!"

"Yeah, _C'mon, Myrty!_ "

"I _refuse_! There's absolutely _no way_ I'm letting the both of you go out into the Marswamp _just_ so Crescent Rose can get some practice being on her Weapon form! What's so important out there, anyway?"

"I don't see any Creatures of Grimm running around here, do you?"

"...oh my god, you're serious, aren't you?"

"Uh, _duh_!"

"Yeah, why wouldn't we be?"

"Because- Ugh…! Gambol, would you please tell our friends that this is a stupid idea and they shouldn't do it?"

"...this is a stupid idea and you shouldn't do it."

"I meant put your book _down_ first. Good grief…."

"So...do you guys wanna come with? It wouldn't feel right if we didn't do this as a team."

"Plus, we're gonna do it anyway, whether you come with us or not."

"Grr!"

"How 'bout it, Gambol; up for a little extra credit practice?"

"...can I finish my page first?"

"Idiots, I'm surrounded by _idiots_!..."

"And we love you to, Myrty!"

"G-get off me, dolt! Don't try to sway me with your adorable wiles!"

"Let Myrtenaster go, Cress, I forgot she doesn't like emotions."

"For your information, _Ember Celica_ , I like emotions just fine, thank you very much! ...now if you insist on dragging me along, there are some things I need to get first."

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

" _Pfft_!"

"Shut up! Like _you_ would want your shoes you paid good Lien for to get ruined!"

"S-sorry, it's just... _pfffffft_!"

"Remind me, _why_ do you have a pair of fishing trousers again?"

"Because, I paid good money for these heels, and I'm not about to go replacing them just yet!"

"Then maybe you should have bought some kicks more suited for walking through the Marswamp instead of those _eyesores_."

"Oh, I didn't buy these; they're on loan from Professor Blunderbuss."

"Oh…! That explains why they're ten sizes too big."

" _And_ they'll keep my outfit safe from all this grime."

"Don't you mean…'all this _Grimm_ '? Eh?"

"Ugh…! Ember, I swear I'll-"

" _Quiet_! There's something up ahead."

"No! I'm going to give Ember Celica a piece of my- *mmm-mmmff!*"

"What is it, Gambol? Grimm? Swamp demons? ... _the Chupacabra?_ "

" _Mmf mm mm mm-mmf, mmf!"_

"Uh, what was that, Myrty? I can't understand you through Ember's hand."

"She said 'That's not a real thing, Dunce!'"

"Oh! Thanks, Em!"

"Any time, Cress!"

" _Anyway_ , I think it's a pack of Beowulves, so we need to be quiet or they'll swarm us."

" _Mm mm-mm?"_

"'How many?'"

"...I'd say at least seven, maybe a couple more. I won't know for sure until I can see them."

"How far away are they?"

"Just ahead."

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

" _Mmf mm mn mmr mm_ mm _!"_

"'That's a lot more than _ten_!'"

"...I guess I miscounted."

"There must be, like... _a million_ of them!"

"Mmf mm-mm mm-mm."

"'There's only fifteen.' Well in _that_ case this shouldn't be a problem!"

"Hey Myrty, you wanna team up this time?"

" _...mm-mm?"_

"'...really?'"

"You're right, Gambol and I haven't teamed up in a while, so I should give her a turn. You OK with that, Gambol?"

" _..."_

"Sure, I guess so."

"Sweet! _Now let's go kick these guys' butts!_ "

"Wow! Your weapon form looks _awesome_ , Cress!"

" _He he, thanks Em!_ "

"Very...mechanical."

" _I know, right? Now come on, Gambol; onward to victory!_ "

"Right."

" _Take this, vile demons!_ "

"You know...I don't know what happened when Cress disappeared the other day, but if it helped her learn how to finally transform fully, I'd call that a win."

" _I'm still dubious about some of things she says happened in this alternate The Remnant she claims she was in. I mean, how does that "Dust" stuff even work?"_

"Iunno, maybe it's magic?"

" _And this board game she keeps going on about, is it_ really _as important to this world as she claims?"_

"You're asking me like I went there too."

" _All I'm saying is that Cress isn't always the most reliable informant. Remember the 'Noodke Incident'?"_

"...yeah, you got a point, there."

" _Uh, guys? More of them showed up; feel free to help out, if you want!"_

" _...we might as well. By the way, your hands are clammy."_

"You're just imagining that!"

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

"Hah...hah...those weird, hulking plant things weren't as tough as these guys!"

"You said it, Cress! ...what weird plant things? We never fought anything like that."

"Right! That was in the _other_ Remnant! Didn't I mention that?"

"...no."

"What Gambol said; this is the first time you've brought that up."

"...really?"

"I could barely understand half the things that spewed out of you mouth when you reappeared, but plant monsters wasn't part of that."

"Not sure what that says about your hearing…."

"Oh shut up, _Ember_!"

"Well, it was _awesome_! I mean not 'awesome' awesome, they were attacking a parade...but fighting them was; you had to slice them in just the right way to kill them, otherwise they'd grow back the parts you cut!"

"Did punching them work?"

"I dunno, maybe? I never thought about that…."

"How about fire? Surely creatures made entirely out of plants would be susceptible to burning, right?"

"I guess so. I think the other You said she killed a bunch of them with fire, Myrty."

"Hmm. Good to know there's at least _one_ person in that other place was intelligent enough to think of that."

"Not really; I think the other Ember and Gambol figured that out too."

"Hah!"

"...makes sense."

"Hmph! No need to rub it in…."

"Anyway, most of them were crushed when the giant flower they came out if fell over. The Me driving the robot almost got crushed too, but fortunately she survived and was able to find the girl inside the petals."

"...I _legitimately_ don't know if she's being serious or not."

" _I am_! Come on Myrty, you know I'm no good at lying!"

"It's true, she's not."

"Thanks, Gambol!"

"...and as oblivious as ever…."

"That's our Crescent Rose!"

"So...are we gonna stay here and kill more Grimm or are we gonna head back to The Beacon? Cuz I'm honestly a little hungry after killing all those Beowulves."

"I am too. ...oh! Gambol or Ember, did either of you remember to count how many both of us killed?"

"You got 24, Cress got 31."

"Sweet!"

"Attagirl!

"Good. Now we're that much closer to reaching our next extra credit goal."

"Seriously, is that _all_ you think about? You're not even _slightly_ annoyed that Cress got more kills than you this time?"

"I care about getting good grades. If I get the best grades of the four of us, that's just a bonus."

"...so is that why you're still wearing the fishing trousers?"

"I don't want to have to keep buying new clothes when these get ruined! ...and that has _nothing_ to do with keeping my grades up!"

"It honestly sounds like something you'd do."

" _You shut up, Ember_!"

"But seriously, go back to The Beacon or kill more Grimm?"

"The Beacon."

"Beacon."

"... _fine_ , let's go back. Then I can get out of this monstrosity and you guys will stop giving me grief."

"And I just remembered I forgot to feed Doggy, eh heh heh…."

"Of _course_ you did…."

fin.

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

 _Now before y'all start crying foul, I'm not being lazy here; as an author I'm a big believer of the "theater of the mind" when it comes to Fanfiction, since your imagination and reasoning tend to fill in blanks when you're already familiar with a work and its characters. (The exception to that being colorful alternate universes, but since this one already takes a lot of cues from Soul Eater I feel it still holds up.) Plus I just wanted to try something more experimental and this setting and these characters seemed to work for it._

 _But seriously folks, don't write in Script format unless it's for a theatrical production, be it stage or cinema, generally._

 _I think out of all the AUs I conceived for this fic this one is probably the most lighthearted and comedic, in part due to its direct inspiration. RJ's is probably a close second, but since that's supposed to be "the real world" problems will and have arisen at some point._

 _Also the question of "does Penny exist in this world?" has been brought to my attention, and the answer is...probably. I haven't quite figured out her gimmick for this setting yet, and by this point Cress & Co. haven't met her yet. I'd love to hear any theories y'all would have on the subject though, since my time must be reserved for other things, nowadays. (Check out "Let's Finding Love" on YouTube, everyone!) _

_Anyway, next chapter will be an anecdote from Sister's life, so we'll probably meet her adorably shy little sister Yang in the process. Get your insulin ready._


End file.
